Adsorption behavior of silver from ammoniacal solutions on activated carbon

The adsorption behavior of silver in ammoniacal solutions on activated carbon was studied. In addition to the concentration of ammonia, the parameters that affect adsorption include temperature, degree of agitation and anion and cation concentrations. In the study, it was found that the adsorption of silver from ammoniacal solutions is dependent on the initial silver concentration in the solution. It was also found that the recovery of silver-from ammoniacal solutions is not as effective as gold. The adsorption rate was relatively slow overall, despite a rapid initial adsorption. The apparent activation energy for the adsorption was measured at 30.2 kJ/mol. It was believed that the kinetics of the silver adsorption on activated carbon was limited by a mixed control mechanism.