Journal of Applied Physical Science International

Impact of Seasons on the Level of Heavy Metals in Omambala River as an Alternative Source of Drinking Water

Okoye Chinenye Vivian — 2026-01-31

Access to potable water is vital for sustaining life and maintaining a robust economy. However, many surface and groundwater sources used for domestic purposes, including drinking, often face contamination by heavy metals. This study focused on the Omambala River in Otuocha, situated in the Anambra-East Local Government Area of Anambra State, to assess how seasonal changes affect heavy metal levels. The wet season samples were collected in July, August and September, 2023 while the dry season samples were collected in December 2023, January and February, 2024. It was observed that the river experienced significant volume reductions during the dry season and notably increases in the wet season. The research aimed to evaluate whether the river water is safe for consumption, following the procedures outlined in the Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater as specified by the American Public Health Association. The heavy metals analyzed included iron, lead, zinc, copper and aluminum. Test results showed iron levels at 0.014 mg/l and 0.013 mg/l in the dry and wet season respectively. Lead concentrations were recorded at 0.02 mg/l and 0.03 mg/l in the dry and wet season respectively. Zinc levels were recorded at 0.92 mg/l and 0.88 mg/l in the dry and wet season respectively. Copper measurements were 0.08 mg/l and 0.09 mg/l during the dry season and wet season, while aluminum levels were 0.14 mg/l in dry and 0.13 mg/l in wet seasons. The study concluded that lead and iron average concentrations exceeded WHO limits, but showing no seasonal variation, while there were slight fluctuations in copper, zinc, and aluminum, but they were below permissible limits. The presence of these metals may stem from natural weathering or industrial discharge. Effective management of domestic and industrial waste discharges into the Omambala River is essential to minimize heavy metals contamination.

Biosorption of Copper (II) Ions from Waste Water Using Chemically Modified Corn Stalk Waste

Samuel Adesina Ojo — 2026-02-28

The performance of chemically modified corn stalk waste as a low cost and environmental friendly adsorbent for the removal of copper (ii) ions was examined using batch process. Factors prompting copper removal including initial copper ion concentration (0.2 – 1.0 g/l), adsorbent dose (0.5 – 10.0 g), contact time (30 – 150 min) and pH (2 – 11) at constant temperature of 30 ^oC were studied. The adsorption process was quite fast and equilibrium was establish before 100 min. Maximum adsorption of 70% for copper (ii) ions was found to occur at pH 8. The equilibrium data obtained were analyzed and the results showed that Langmuir isotherm with R² value at 0.99 best described the adsorption equilibrium data. The maximum adsorption capacity for the adsorption process calculated from the Langmuir isotherm was found to be 66.2 mg/g. This high value of the adsorption capacity indicated that the corn stalk waste can be used as a potential alternative for the removal of Cu (II) ions from wastewater.

Green Approach to Ampicillin Removal: Modified Rice Husk as a Sustainable Adsorbent

C. I. Egwuatu — 2026-05-02

Widespread occurrence of the antibiotic ampicillin in water bodies, due to incomplete removal by conventional treatments, contributes to antimicrobial resistance and environmental risks. This study evaluated the adsorption performance of acid-treated rice husk (ARH) for the removal of ampicillin from industrial wash off, incorporating kinetic, thermodynamic, and statistical optimization frameworks.

Rice husk was treated with tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid (H₂SO₄), noted as ARH and then characterized for surface functional groups and morphology. Experiments were carried out by varying three adsorption factors: adsorbent dosage (1 to 5g), contact time (29.3 to 180min) and ampicillin concentration (1 to 5mg/mL). Adsorption experiment was designed using the central composite design (CCD) of the response surface methodology (RSM). Experiments were carried out for optimization, equilibrium isotherm, kinetics and thermodynamic studies.

The adsorption kinetics aligned closely with the pseudo-second-order model (R² = 0.9964). Thermodynamic analysis confirmed the process to be both spontaneous and exothermic, characterized by a negative enthalpy change (ΔH° = –21.17 kJ/mol) and consistently negative Gibbs free energy values suggesting favourable adsorption. Ampicillin concentration and ARH dosage were identified as the most statistically significant parameters influencing removal efficiency. The developed quadratic model exhibited high predictive reliability (R² = 0.9660, P < 0.001) with low significant lack-of-fit, supporting its robustness. Optimization analysis predicted a maximum removal efficiency of 94.99% under the conditions of 181 minutes contact time, 1.0 g/L ARH dosage, and 4.47 mg/L initial concentration, achieving a desirability score of 1.000.

These findings underscore the efficacy of ARH as a sustainable, low-cost biosorbent for the treatment of pharmaceutical-laden wastewater, demonstrating high performance under carefully optimized conditions and strong potential for scalable environmental applications.