Boron Removal from Water: A Comparative Study of Adsorption, Ion Exchange, and Chemical Treatment Methods

Abstract

This research assessed boron removal from water using adsorption, ion exchange, and chemical oxo-precipitation (COP). Ion exchange demonstrated the highest efficiency, attaining removal rates of up to 98.5%, particularly under alkaline pH conditions and through a two-stage treatment process. The COP demonstrated efficacy (up to 95.2%) but necessitated high lime dosages, prompting concerns regarding chemical utilisation and sludge generation. The adsorption performance of activated carbon and zeolites was limited, with removal rates not exceeding 29.3%. Boron concentrations were quantified via a UV-Vis spectrophotometric method exhibiting robust linearity (R² = 0.9993). Ion exchange proved the most reliable and adaptable approach, with the selection of treatment conditioned upon water chemistry and operational requirements.