The present study examined the use of perlite for the removal of cadmium from aqueous solutions.
The effects of pH and contact time on the adsorption process were examined. The optimum pH for adsorption was
found to be 6.0. Residual cadmium concentration reached equilibrium in 6 h and the rate
of cadmium adsorption by perlite was rapid in the first hour of the reaction time. Ho’s pseudo-second order
model best described the kinetics of the reaction. Batch adsorption experiments conducted at
room temperature (22±1 ◦C) showed that the adsorption pattern followed the Freundlich isotherm
model. The maximum removal of cadmium obtained from batch studies was 55%. Thomas model
was used to describe the adsorption data from column studies. The results generally showed that
perlite could be considered as a potential adsorbent for cadmium removal from aqueous solutions.
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