Defluoridation of ground water using adsorbent

Abstract

 Fluoride is often called a two- edge sword. In the human system this fluoride has a dual personality, a destructive effect (greater than 1.5 ppm – dental & skeletal fluorosis) and a beneficial effect (upto1.0 ppm – caries prevention and health promotion). World Health Organization (WHO) and IS: 10500 recommend that the fluoride content in drinking water should be in the range of 1.0 to1.5 ppm. Fluoride concentrations beyond the standards cause dental and skeletal fluorosis. This paper presents the findings of an investigation on the use of leaf powder from various trees for the defluoridation of water. Here the study presents the suitability of inexpensive leaf adsorbents to effectively remediate fluoride-contaminated water. The efficiency of the sorption of fluoride ion is affected by contact time, pH and particle size of adsorbents. Treated leaf powder was studied at various pHs & contact time with aqueous solutions containing 10mg F– /l.