Journal of health research in community

Introduction and purpose: One of the problems concerning industrial effluent, particularly those of textile industries, is the existence of dye. Therefore, it is mandatory to treat these effluents before being discharged to the environment. This study aims to evaluate the adsorption rate of acid orange (AO7) from aqueous solution by activated red mud.
Methods: In this empirical laboratory study, we used red mud as an absorbent to remove acid orange 7 dye. The effect of various parameters on performance of absorbent was investigated, and the isotherms and kinetics of adsorption were determined. The dye concentration was measured at wavelength of 452 nm by a spectrophotometer.
Results: Red mud surface area was 30 mg/g, and dye removal was the highest at a solution pH of 3 and an absorbent powder dose of 12 g/L. The AO7 removal percentage decreased by 43% in a 60-minute contact time, while the dye concentration increased from 10 mg/L to 100 mg/L. The absorption study highly correlated with the Langmuir isotherm and the second order kinetic models.
Conclusion: The results of this study showed that red mud has a good ability to absorb dye and can be used as an efficient and cost-effective absorbent for treating textile industry effluent.