Removal of lead from a synthetic effluent via ionic flotation using xanthate | [Remoción de plomo de un efluente sintético vía flotación iónica utilizando xantato]

Lead is a toxic metal and its removal from industrial effluents is important. This can be done in several ways including ion dissolved air flotation (DAF). The advantages of the latter are multiple, among them speed, efficiency, low cost and space requirement. Tests were carried out with an aqueous synthetic wastewater of lead nitrate simulating the effluent of a producer of batteries. Xanthate was used as collector, a widely applied approach in ore processing. The variables studied were the size of the hydrocarbon chain of xanthate, xanthate concentration, pH, contact time, and foaming concentration. Quantification of residual lead was obtained by atomic adsorption. The proposed method revealed that dissolved air flotation is an efficient technique for the removal of lead ions, like the technique at the present is successful used in ore separation. It was observed that the pH and the amount of foaming did not have an effect. However, a solution of 20 mg L-1 of Pb could be reduced to 0.65 mg L-1, corresponding to a removal of 96.8% of the initial concentration.