Ouricuri (Syagrus coronata) fiber: a novel biosorbent to remove methylene blue from aqueous solutions

In this work, the potential of ouricuri ( Syagrus coronata ) fiber as a novel biosorbent to remove methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solutions was investigated. The fiber was prepared and characterized according to the fundamental features for adsorption. A 2 3 experimental design was used to evaluate the effects of adsorbent dosage ( M ), fiber diameter ( D ) and agitation ( A ) on the adsorption capacity. In the more adequate conditions, kinetic and equilibrium studies were performed. The experimental design results showed that M = 10 g L −1 ), D = 0.595 mm and A = 200 rpm were the more adequate conditions for MB adsorption. Based on the kinetic study, it was found that the adsorption process was fast, being the equilibrium attained at about 5 minutes, with 90% of color removal. The isotherm was properly represented by the Sips model, and the maximum adsorption capacity was 31.7 mg g −1 . In brief, it was demonstrated that ouricuri fiber is an alternative biosorbent to remove MB from aqueous media, taking into account the process efficiency and economic viewpoint.