Adsorption of Pharmaceutical Aromatic Pollutants on Heat-Treated Activated Carbons: Effect of Carbonaceous Structure and the Adsorbent–Adsorbate Interactions

Drugs are considered emerging pollutants from water sources and are therefore considered to be of high toxicological risk to aquatic fauna. Activated carbon adsorption is one of the methods approved by the Word Health Organization to remove pharmaceutical compounds from water in treatment plants due to its cost and easy implementation. This study presents the modification of a commercial activated carbon by heat treatment at 1073, 1173, and 1273 K. The impact of the physicochemical changes of the adsorbent on the adsorption capacity of salicylic acid and methylparaben, compounds derived from phenol, was studied. Finally, the adsorbate-adsorbent interactions are evaluated through immersion calorimetry. It is observed that at 1173 K, activated carbon increases its surface area by 29%. At higher temperatures, the surface area drops to 21%. In the activated carbon subjected to heat treatment at 1173 K, it increases the adsorption capacity of salicylic acid and methylparaben by 24 and 34%, respectively, compared to activated carbons subjected to higher temperatures. The interaction enthalpies (adsorbate-adsorbent interaction) have values between -12 and 5 J g -1 .