Characterization of adsorptive power of panasco grass biomass (Aristida adscensionis Linn) for use in removal of hydrogen carbonate contaminants present in water bodies

Contamination of water bodies by petroleum-derived products, especially gasoline, is a global environmental concern. As a result, research on different decontamination methods is being developed. Among these, adsorption stands out, which uses biomass to separate contaminant/water phases. In view of this, the objective of this work was to study adsorptive efficiency of Panasco grass (Aristida adscensionis Linn) to remove gasoline present in water bodies. Initially, biomass was prepared in particulate form and subsequently subjected to kinetic and adsorption equilibrium tests based on methodology proposed by Lima et al. (2014). In the experiments for study of adsorption kinetics, times from 05 to 60 minutes (with 5-minute intervals) were evaluated without varying the concentration, while in equilibrium, contaminant concentrations varied from 5 to 60% (with a variation rate of 5%). Results indicated that adsorption of gasoline by Panasco grass is rapid and efficient, with relatively high capacity for contaminant removal. These data demonstrate the potential of Panasco grass as a natural and low-cost adsorbent for treatment of waters contaminated by hydrocarbon compounds.