Valorization of cotton waste generated from the Tunisian textile industry through the production of adsorbents carbonaceous materials

In this study, activated carbon (AC) was prepared from waste cotton generated from the Tunisian spinning industry. AC was prepared using a carbonization at 700°C followed by a chemical activation (with H3PO4 and ZnCL2). Thermogravimetric analysis was used to analyze the carbonization step. There was a considerable decrease in weight loss in the region of 280°C to 380°C attributed mainly to the cellulose degradation. In a second step, the activated carbons were characterized different analytical techniques. In particular, the effect of carbonization and chemical activation on the cross-section and surface was detected with SEM. In addition, FTIR analysis showed the disappearance of many surface groups in range between 2000 cm-1 and 4000 cm-1 after activation while TPD-MS showed that with the acidic character of the activated carbon with H3PO4 comparing to ZnCL2. ZnCL2 activated carbon was used for the removal of textile dye, namely Alizarin S from aqueous solution for different experimental conditions. The maximum adsorption capacity of Alizarin S was Qmax= 181mg/g obtained at pH =3 and T=25°C.