Adsorption of aflatoxin B1 on magnetic carbon nanocomposites prepared from bagasse

A novel adsorbent for the removal of aflatoxin from poultry feed was prepared from bagasse and was characterized by surface area analyzer, SEM, XRD, FTIR, TG/DTA and EDX. A specially designed chamber was used for the preparation of the adsorbent. SEM, XRD and FTIR analysis showed the iron oxide presence on the adsorbent surface. The adsorption parameters were determined for aflatoxin adsorption using Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. The equilibrium time was 115 min for 200 ppm at pH 3 while 150 min at pH 7. At high pH there was a decline in percent adsorption. Best fit was obtained with pseudo first order kinetics model for the kinetics data of adsorption. The value of ΔS0 (30.67 kJ mol−1 deg−1) was positive while that of ΔH0 (−5.9 kJ mol−1) and ΔG0 (−9.303, −9.610, −9.916 and −10.226 kJ mol−1 correspond to 30, 40, 50 and 60 °C) was negative. The increase in ΔG0 values with temperature showed that the adsorption process was favorable at high temperature. Keywords: Aflatoxins, Adsorption, Equilibrium time, Bagasse