
<strong>Paper Title</strong><br>
Utilisation of Chemically Activated Maize Tassel For Remediation of Eutrophic Phosphorus<br>
<br>

<strong>Abstract</strong><br>
Chemical precipitation with lime, the technology of choice for phosphate removal from contaminated waters, is
expensive. In this study the feasibility of utilizing low-cost chemically activated maize tassel for the adsorptive removal of
phosphate was assessed. H3PO4 was added to maize tassel powder in the impregnation ratio 2:1(w/w H3PO4: tassel) and
activated at 600°C under an inert atmosphere of N2. The activated product was characterized by BET. Activation resulted in
an increase in specific surface area from SBET 2.54 to 803.8 m2/g. Batch experiments were performed to study the removal of
phosphate from simulated samples; the optimal parameters were found to be: contact time of 90 min, pH 7 and adsorbent
dosage of 1.5 g per 100 mL solution. The adsorption data were fitted to the Langmuir isotherm model (R2 > 0.99), yielding
an estimated adsorption capacity of 15.41 mg PO4
3- (as P) per g adsorbent. The activated product was successfully applied
for the remediation of phosphate in selected sewage samples.
Keywords- Maize tassel, chemical activation, eutrophication, phosphate removal.