Characterization and application of tourmaline and beryl from Brazilian pegmatite in adsorption process with divalent metals

In this study, the original tourmaline and beryl mineral samples have been collected from a Brazilian pegmatite. The objective of this study was to examine the adsorption behavior of Brazilian ciclosilicate samples, towards divalent metals (Pb²⁺, Mn²⁺, and Zn²⁺) in ethanol solution has been studies by a batch technique. The ciclosilicate samples were characterized by elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, helium picnometry, mercury porosity, and nitrogen adsorption–desorption. The Langmuir expression for adsorption isotherm was applied in order to determine the adsorption capacity to form a monolayer and the constant related to the adsorption intensity. In aqueous solution there was a significant adsorption increase with the temperature and pronounced synergistic effects were observed. The maximum number of moles adsorbed was determined to be 12.48 and 11.49 mmol/g for systems Pb²⁺/beryl and Pb²⁺/tourmaline, respectively. The energetic effects caused by metal cations adsorption were determined through calorimetric titrations. Thermodynamics indicated the existence of favorable conditions for such Pb²⁺-, Mn²⁺-, and Zn²⁺–OH interactions.