Speaker
Description
The treatment of high-strength abattoir effluent remains a critical environmental and public health challenge. This study evaluates the efficacy of P-32 powdered activated carbon (PAC), a locally engineered bio-based adsorbent in reducing levels of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) in effluent from the Kumasi Abattoir Ghana (KAG). Standard methods were used in sample collection and analysis. Batch adsorption studies were employed using varying masses (5-25 g) of P-32 PAC. The study’s hypothesis: P-32 PAC will effectively reduce COD and BOD levels in KAG’s effluent, was tested using Paired sample t-test. Adsorbent-adsorbates interactions were investigated using linear and nonlinear adsorption isotherms. Polynomial and modified exponential decay models (mEDM) were used to predict P-32 PAC’s dosage required to remediate COD and BOD to achieve regulatory limits. The findings revealed worrisome pollution levels (COD: 6613.33 ± 46.19 mg/L, BOD: 1832.28 ± 28.57 mg/L). The biodegradability index (BI = 0.28 ± 0.01) indicated limited potential for biological treatment, necessitating physical-chemical remediation. Applying P-32 PAC, monotonically reduced 69.4% and 73.7% of the total COD and BOD, respectively, at 25 g/L (p = 0.0014; Cohen’s d > 2.9), rejecting the null hypothesis. Linear Langmuir and Freundlich models described COD and BOD behavior, respectively. The polynomial model demonstrated superior fit (RMSE: COD = 85.50, BOD = 24.73), estimating optimal masses of 34.07 g/L (COD) and 28.12 g/L (BOD) at appreciable prediction interval. These findings support P-32 PAC as an effective, eco-friendly adsorbent for high-strength abattoir effluent treatment, with implications for scalable wastewater solutions in resource-limited settings.