Use of ZSM-5 Photocatalyst for the Removal of Nickel and Cadmium Cations in Batch Experiment

Wastewater is a critical global issue that must be addressed properly. Photocatalysis is a new technique that integrates approaches to wastewater treatment, particularly cation-based treatment. Herein, ZSM-5 zeolite was used as a photocatalyst to remove Ni and Cd cations from a wastewater stream under ultraviolet (UV) light. The physicochemical features of the ZSM-5-based photocatalyst were investigated using BET surface area, pore volume, XRD, SEM, FTIR, and TGA analyses. Furthermore, different factors were explored, such as the initial cation concentration, ZSM-5 loading, and contact time, to check their influence on the removal of cations' efficiency. It was postulated that the lower the cation concentration, the higher the removal efficiency and the faster the kinetics. For instance, at 12 min and a concentration of 50 ppm, the removal percentages were 99.549% for Ni and 92.282% for Cd. However, the removal percentage decreases for nickel to 47.836% and for Cd to 35.189% at 200 ppm. Moreover, the removal kinetics of cations were also tested under pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order models. The pseudo-second-order model fits better than the pseudo-first-order model for both Ni and Cd cations. This study identified a promising photocatalyst for removing metal cations in wastewater treatment.