Waste wool samples, mainly dyed wool-synthetic blends discarded from wool manufacturing processes, have been examined for their ability to absorb mercury from aqueous solutions of mercury (II) chloride. The amount of mercury sorbed paralleled the keratin protein (wool) content reaching more than 90 percent sorption from 100 ppm Hg solutions. Variations in solution pH, temperature and chloride ion concentration, and wool:liquor ratios, which were likely to be found in industrial effluents were examined for their effects on both the rates and amount of mercury sorbed. Waste carpet wool was further examined for its efficiency in removing mercury from simulated effluents from chlor-alkali plants using the once-through process and from effluents supplied by a chlor-alkali manufacturer using the recirculating brine process. The results show that waste carpet wool has definite advantages for the treatment of mercury-containing effluents. Waste wool samples in general, which are available in large quantities and at virtually little cost, offer a real potential for the removal of mercury to acceptable levels from industrial effluents, such as those from dental clinics and laboratories as well as the chlor-alkali industry.
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