INTRODUCTION:
1. Background of the Study
Water pollution caused by industrial effluents, especially dyes and heavy metal ions,
is a serious environmental problem worldwide and in India.[1] These pollutants are toxic,
non-biodegradable, and harmful to aquatic life and human health. Adsorption is considered
one of the most effective and low-cost methods for removing such pollutants from
wastewater.[2]
Congress grass (Parthenium hysterophorus) is a harmful weed. It has both some
minor merits and many demerits.
It can be used to make compost or green manure after proper treatment.[3]
Some studies show it has medicinal properties in controlled laboratory conditions.
[4]
It helps in soil binding in barren areas (to a very limited extent).[5]
It is sometimes used in biogas production after treatment.[6]
It causes serious allergies, skin rashes, asthma, and breathing problems in humans.[7]
It is toxic to cattle and reduces milk production.[8]
It spreads very fast and reduces crop yield by competing for nutrients.[9]
It destroys biodiversity by preventing the growth of native plants.[10]
Its pollen causes hay fever and eye irritation.[11]
To understand and improve the adsorption process, studies on sorption equilibrium,
kinetics, and thermodynamics are very important. These studies help explain the interaction
between adsorbate and adsorbent and assist in designing effective wastewater treatment
systems [11].
Previous research has reported the adsorption of malachite green dye using mulberry
leaf powder and its biochar, showing high dye removal efficiency. The adsorption behavior
was explained using equilibrium and kinetic models [12].
2. Research Problem
Although many studies have been carried out on dye and heavy metal removal using
plant-based adsorbents, there is still a need to identify new, low-cost biomaterials that can
remove both dyes and heavy metal ions simultaneously [13].
In particular, agricultural wastes and invasive plant species such as ‘Heterosporous
Parthenium’ need to be explored as potential adsorbents with good removal efficiency [14].
Existing studies on similar plant-based adsorbents show promising results, but combined dye
and metal ion adsorption in a single system has not been adequately studied.
3. Review Gap / Research Gap
Earlier research has demonstrated effective dye removal using plant leaf powders and
biochar. These studies used equilibrium, kinetic, and thermodynamic models to explain
adsorption mechanisms. For example, the equilibrium, kinetic, and thermodynamic study for
the removal of malachite green dye using mulberry leaf powder showed Freundlich isotherm
behavior and pseudo-second-order kinetics in batch experiments [15].
However, systematic studies on the combined adsorption of dyes and heavy metal
ions using invasive plant materials such as ‘Heterosporous Parthenium’ are still very limited.
Comprehensive modeling of multi-pollutant adsorption using plant leaf powder has not been
fully explored.
4. Significance of the Study
Studying the adsorption behavior of dyes and heavy metal ions onto ‘Heterosporous
Parthenium’ biomass will help in developing low-cost and eco-friendly adsorbents for
industrial wastewater treatment. This research also supports sustainable waste management by
utilizing invasive or agricultural plant biomass for environmental remediation.
5. Objectives of the Study
1. To evaluate the adsorption performance of grass-based ‘Heterosporous Parthenium’
biomass for the removal of selected dyes and heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions,
similar to studies conducted using microbial and plant-based adsorbents [16].
2. To analyze adsorption equilibrium using isotherm models such as Langmuir and Freundlich
and determine which model gives better accuracy [17].
3. To study adsorption kinetics using pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order models for
better understanding of the adsorption process [8].
4. To determine thermodynamic parameters (ΔH°, ΔG°, ΔS°) in order to understand the
nature and feasibility of the adsorption process and to validate the experimental data [19].
These objectives follow the standard methodological framework used in earlier adsorption
studies.
6. Scope of the Study
The study is limited to batch adsorption experiments involving:
Different concentrations of textile dyes such as malachite green and crystal violet, Selected
heavy metal ions
such as Cu(II) and Pb(II), Variation in contact time, temperature, initial adsorbate
concentration, adsorbent
dose, and Ph, The results will be interpreted using equilibrium, kinetic, and thermodynamic
parameters.
[1] Upma Singh, Shikha Singh, Rishikesh K. Tiwari and Ravi S. Pandey Int. Arch. App. Sci.
Technol; Vol 9 [4] December 2018 : 111-121
[2] Soumi Dutta,a Bramha Gupta,a Suneel Kumar Srivastava *b and Ashok Kumar Gupta*c
royal society of chemistry Cite this: Mater. Adv., 2021, 2, 4497
[3] AK Dolai, MK Bhowmick, P Ghosh and RK Ghosh Journal of Pharmacognosy and
Phytochemistry 2019; 8(2): 2241-2245
[4] Seema Patel Received: 27 September 2010 / Accepted: 5 April 2011 / Published online:
27 April 2011 The Author(s) 2011. This article is published with open access at
[Link]
[5] Sarita Oli1 , Bhuwan Bohara2 , Rajeev Joshi3,* n S. Oli, B. Bohara, R. Joshi. A Review
on Parthenium hysterophorus L. and its application in agriculture, Journal of Agricultural
Sciences and Engineering, 2024, 6(1), 16-31.
[6] Rajbala International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences
[Link] Online ISSN: 2664-7133, Print ISSN: 2664-7125 Received: 15-07-
2024, Accepted: 14-08-2024, Published: 29-08-2024 Volume 6, Issue 3, 2024, Page No. 107-
112
[7] Vinod K. Sharma, Parul Verma Indian Journal of Dermatology, Venereology, and
Leprology | September-October 2012 | Vol 78 | Issue 5
[8] Rajesh Kumar Meena, Bhupender Dutt, Rajneesh Kumar and Kulwant Rai Sharma
International Journal of Chemical Studies 2017; 5(4): 643-647
[9] Shobha Sondhia1*, Dasari Sreekanth1 , Deepak V. Pawar1 , K.N. Geetha2 and Alok
Kumar Sen1 Indian Journal of Weed Science (2024) 56(4): 391–403
[Link]
[10] Manpreet Kaur, Neeraj Kumar Aggarwal, Vikas Kumar, and Romika Dhiman Hindawi
Publishing Corporation International Scholarly Research Notices Volume 2014, Article ID
368647, 12 pages [Link]
{11] Muhammad Ali1 , Riaz Ahmad Afridi 2 , Sadiq Ali 3, Manahal Sarooj1, Malik Nawaz
Shuja4,Hasan Riaz5 BioScientific Review (BSR) Volume 3 Issue 3,September 2021 ISSN
(P): 2663 – 4198 ISSN (E) : 2663 - 4201
[11] Kosar Hikmat Hama Aziz , Fryad S Mustafa a, Khalid M Omer a, Sarkawt
a,b,✉
Hama , Rebaz Fayaq Hamarawf , Kaiwan Othman Rahman a, RSC Adv
a a
. 2023 Jun 12;13(26):17595–17610. doi: 10.1039/d3ra00723e
[12] Fairooz Ahmad Khan & Mazahar Farooqui Vol. 30, March, 2023 pp. 165-172
DOI: 10.56042/ijct.v30i2.66355
[13] Said Meftah1 · Khadija Meftah2 · Nabil Babassa1 · Karima Malous3 ·
Meryem Drissi4 · Ayoub Amahrous1 · Nada Jabri5 · Jihane Fathi2 · Khadija Aguerchi6 ·
Youssef Laababid4 · Oumayma Adnouss1 · Mehdi Taib1 · Oumaima Zinaoui7 ·
Oukani ElHassan1 · Lahboub Bouyazza
29 September 2025 Volume 6, article number 971, (2025)
[14] MAHESH G. BHOYAR, OMKAR J. GAVKARE, CHIRANJEEVA MILKURI REDDY
AND VIKAS [Link] Jr. of Industrial Pollution Control 30(2)(2014) pp 309-312 ©
EM Internationa
[15] FAIROOZ AHMAD KHANa , ABDUL AHADb , SAMREEN FATEMAc AND
MAZAHAR FAROOQUId1 Indian [Link]. 12 (2): 23-33, 2022
[16] Shalini Srivastava1 & S. B. Agrawal 1 & M. K. Mondal2 Received: 30 January 2015
/Accepted: 19 August 2015 /Published online: 29 August 2015 # Springer-Verlag Berlin
Heidelberg 2015
[17] Nimibofa Ayawei, Augustus Newton Ebelegi, and Donbebe Wankasi Hindawi Journal
of Chemistry Volume 2017, Article ID 3039817, 11 pages
[Link]
[18] Zare, Leila; Ghasemi-Fasaei, Reza’ Iran. J. Chem. Chem. Eng. Research Article Vol. 38,
No. 5, 2019
[19] Chikmagalur Raju Girish1 Chemical Papers (2025) 79:5687–5706
([Link] Received: 5 April 2025 / Accepted: 26 June
2025 / Published online: 11 July 2025 © The Author(s) 2025