Molecular structure effects in the adsorption behaviour of some aromatic heterocyclic compounds at high-area carbon-cloth in relation to waste-water purification

Adsorption behaviours of some structurally related aromatic heterocyclic compounds at an high-area carbon-cloth material have been investigated in relation to waste-water purification. Adsorption processes were followed by monitoring the concentration of adsorbates in a specially designed cell using an in situ UV spectrophotometric method. The rates of adsorption were compared by treating the data according to first-order kinetics. Among the seven heterocyclic compounds studied, thiophene was found to exhibit the highest adsorption rate. This was attributed to the presence of the electron-donative S heteroatom in the structure of this compound. The influences of the dipole moment, the orientation at the C-cloth surface and the size of the heterocyclic adsorbate compound, as well as the type of heteroatom in the ring and the adsorbates' hydration parameters, on the extent of adsorption of these compounds at the C-cloth were investigated.