Removal of Turbidity and Color of Contaminated Drinking Water Sources using Chitosan-Bentonite Composite as Adsorbent

Abstract

The composites of biopolymer chitosan obtained from the swamp fish scale with bentonite as clay minerals has been characterized by the structural, mechanical, surface functional group and composition properties using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis. The morphology structure obtained by SEM for the original chitosan, bentonite, and its composites showed that the particles are relatively well dispersed in the chitosan matrix. The physicochemical properties of the chitosan-bentonite composites depend significantly on the chemistry of the polymer matrices, the nature of bentonite, their modification, and the preparation methods that showed by SEM, TGA, XRF and XRD analysis. The obtained composite of chitosan bentonite was then applied for treating raw water sources of drinking water in Bilu river, South Kalimantan, during the dry season. The raw water sources contained a high value of turbidity (ca. of 370±30 NTU) and color (1300±150 Pt-Co). Batch experiment using the composite of chitosan bentonite for treating raw water sources was significant to reduce the value of turbidity, and the color becomes 24.8±2 NTU and 86.7±5 Pt-Co, respectively. The results then compare to the treatment using the commercial chitosan and bentonite self. Moreover, it found that the raw water treatment using the composite of chitosan-bentonite is more favorable than chitosan and bentonite materials.