Removal of phenols from aqueous solution by XAD-4 resin

The experiments on the adsorption of phenols from aqueous solution by Amberlite XAD-4, a polystyrene-divinylbenzene resin without functional group, were carried out under different conditions. The phenols studied in this research include 2-chlorophenol, 2,4-dichlorophenol, 2,4,6-trichlorophenol, 2-nitrophenol, 2,4-dinitrophenol, 2-methylphenol, and 2,4-dimethylphenol. The experimental observations indicate that adsorption behavior of various phenols by XAD-4 resin could be described by either Langmuir or Freundlich models. The removals of phenols by XAD-4 resin for solutions of different pH varied significantly and can be explained by the species distribution of phenols in aqueous solutions. Phenols were effectively removed by XAD-4 resin at acidic conditions where the presence of molecular phenol species dominates. The removal decreased sharply for alkaline solutions where the negatively-charged ionic species is the dominant phenol species. The proposed adsorption equilibrium model adequately describes the sorption behavior of phenols by XAD-4 resin. The presence of functional groups on the benzene ring of various phenols plays an important role on the extent of adsorption. The removals of phenols by adsorption were found to correlate with the octanol/water partition coefficients of various phenol compounds.