Prepration of modified clay from Koh Kred and bentonite by pillaring for adsorption of benzene, toluene and xylene

The modification of Koh Kred’s clay and bentonite to develop new adsorbent for volatile organic compounds removal particularly for benzene, toluene, and xylene by cation exchange properties of clay or bentonite was investigated. Both clays were pillared with tetraethyl ammonium chloride, TEA, equivalent to 0.75, 1.00, 1.25, 1.50, 1.75, and 2.00 times of clay CEC so that the pillared clay became more organophillic. The results showed that more surface area could not be enhanced for Koh Kred’s clay by pillaring technique, whereas this could be possible for bentonite. After pillaring, bentonite’s Langmuir surface and micropore areas increased 26.27% or 145.1181 m2/g and 70.17% or 40.7804 m2/g, respectively. Considering adsorption capacity of benzene, toluene and xylene, PILB 32 was practically 1/7 times lower than activated carbon. But for surface area and yield reduction rate after regenerations, PILB 32 was found to be superior to activated carbon. Accordingly, due to specific structural characteristics of high thermal resistance at 800 OC. PILB 32 can be applied for some toxic substances which need to be treated under high temperature. Surface area and yield retaining properties exhibited that PILB 32 can help preserve resources and also reduce energy consumption.