Estratégias para redução do consumo de carvão ativado no tratamento de efluentes fenólicos: Análise técnica e econômica do processo em batelada de um e dois estágios

Abstract

The treatment of industrial effluents containing toxic compounds has driven the search for alternative strategies to reduce process costs. Among these pollutants, phenolic compounds pose significant risks to human health and the environment, even at concentrations close to 1 ppm. Adsorption using activated carbon is widely employed in the industry due to its cost-effectiveness and operational simplicity, also enabling the use of renewable raw materials. Thus, this work aimed to develop strategies to reduce activated carbon consumption in batch adsorption processes. Phenol was used as a model compound, along with industrial effluents containing phenolic compounds. The study evaluated the optimization of operational parameters (contact time and pH) and multi-stage strategies using different adsorbents. It was found that the optimal contact time varied depending on the adsorbent, whereas a pH range of 3–4 maximized adsorption efficiency. The feasibility of a two-stage process without intermediate filtration depended on the desorption capacity of the adsorbent, whereas the two-stage approach with intermediate filtration showed potential to reduce the cost of a single-stage process by 33%. It is expected that these results will benefit companies operating in the sector by providing strategies to reduce adsorbent consumption and mitigate environmental impact.