In this study, Macadamia-derived activated carbon was utilized for the remediation of selected heavy metals from wastewater samples. The selected heavy metals include Pb (II), Fe (III), Cd (II), and Zn (II). The activated carbon used in the study was modified with KMnO₄ and HNO₃ to increase the content of the oxygen-containing functional groups on the adsorbent surface. Both the unmodified activated carbon (UAC) and modified activated carbon (MAC) adsorbents were employed throughout the study for comparative purposes in a multi-metallic system. The adsorbents were characterised using Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray (SEM/EDX) analysis, and elemental (CHNS) analysis. Elemental analysis revealed an increased oxygen content from UAC to the MAC adsorbent from 8.34 % to 22.87 %. Scanning electron microscopy revealed a morphological contrast in the surfaces of both adsorbents. Optimal conditions for the carbon sorbents were observed at a pH 5, adsorbent mass of 0.2 g, initial concentration of 50 mg L^-1, 4 h contact time, and a temperature of 298 K. Overall performance in removal efficiencies were recorded to be 74.74 % for UAC and 87.39 % for MAC. The MAC displayed superior removal efficiencies for Pb (II), and Fe (III) as compared to Cd (II) and Zn (II). Both adsorbents were applied in the treatment of acid mine drainage and leachate samples and the results indicated successful heavy metal remediation using the MAC adsorbent. Two-parameter and three-parameter adsorption isotherm models were fit to the experimental data, and it was found that the Langmuir model was better suited to the equilibrium data as opposed to the other models. The adsorption kinetics were best described using the pseudo-second-order model. Maximum adsorption capacities produced for UAC and MAC were found to be 3.00 and 3.50 mg g⁻¹ respectively.

在这项研究中，澳洲坚果衍生的活性炭被用于修复废水样品中的选定重金属。选择的重金属包括 Pb (II)、Fe (III)、Cd (II) 和 Zn (II)。研究中使用的活性炭用 KMnO ₄和 HNO _3改性以增加吸附剂表面含氧官能团的含量。在整个研究中使用未改性活性炭 (UAC) 和改性活性炭 (MAC) 吸附剂，用于多金属系统中的比较目的。使用傅里叶变换红外 (FTIR) 光谱、扫描电子显微镜结合能量色散 X 射线 (SEM/EDX) 分析和元素 (CHNS) 分析对吸附剂进行了表征。元素分析显示从 UAC 到 MAC 吸附剂的氧含量从 8.34% 增加到 22.87%。扫描电子显微镜显示两种吸附剂表面的形态对比。^{在 pH 值为 5、吸附剂质量为 0.2 g、初始浓度为 50 mg L -1}时观察到碳吸附剂的最佳条件，接触时间 4 小时，温度 298 K。UAC 的整体去除效率记录为 74.74%，MAC 为 87.39%。与 Cd (II) 和 Zn (II) 相比，MAC 对 Pb (II) 和 Fe (III) 的去除效率更高。两种吸附剂都应用于酸性矿山排水和渗滤液样品的处理，结果表明使用 MAC 吸附剂成功修复了重金属。两参数和三参数吸附等温线模型拟合实验数据，发现朗缪尔模型比其他模型更适合平衡数据。使用准二级模型最好地描述吸附动力学。发现 UAC 和 MAC 产生的最大吸附容量为 3.00 和 3.50 mg g^-1分别。