ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Response surface methodology for optimization of alizarin red S dye removal by carbon-based adsorbents derived from durian fruit shells: a waste-to-wealth approach

Giang Thanh Tran and Thuan Van Tran

Nguyen Tat Thanh University Center for Hi-Tech Development, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

E-mail: tranvt@ntt.edu.vn

Received: 3 September 2025  Accepted: 17 November 2025

Abstract:

Dye contamination is currently a pressing global concern caused by their untreated widespread into water sources. Dyes have adverse impacts on aquatic ecosystems and human health, hence, removal of dyes is required. As a waste-to-wealth approach, herein, the durian fruit shell waste (DFW) was used as a low-cost, locally, and available source for the production of activated carbon (DFW-AC). The effect of KOH concentration (10–30%) was investigated. Moreover, the effect of alizarin red S concentration (25–80 mg/L), pH (3.5–9.0), and dosage (0.1–0.5) on removal efficiency of DFW-AC was studied. KOH activation was highly efficient because it has increased the surface area of DFW-AC up to 144 times. Notably, more pores of DFW-AC were observed after KOH activation. For adsorption of ARS, the RSM was applied to predict the optimal adsorption condition such as concentration (25–75 mg/L), pH (4–8), dosage (0.2–0.4 g/L), time (120–240 min). The maximum ARS adsorption capacity using Langmuir equation was 225 mg/g. Several mechanisms such as π–π stacking, H bonding, and electrostatic interaction were explained. It is recommended that activated carbon from durian fruit waste can be a good adsorbent for treatment of toxic dyes from water.

Keywords: Fruit waste; Durian shell; Dye pollution; Adsorption technique; Adsorption optimization

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-025-04521-7

Chemical Papers 80 (3) 2389–2405 (2026)