JORIND 10 (3), December, 2012. ISSN 1596 - 8308. www.transcampus.org./journals, www.ajol.info/journals/jorind 47 PERFORMANCE OF NON-CONVENTIONAL ADSORBENTS FOR THE REMOVAL OF AROMATICS FROM KEROSENE B.O. Evbuomwan Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria and K. B. Oyoh Department of Chemical Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Nigeria E-mail: b_evbuomwan@yahoo.com +2348037106577 Abstract The study of low-cost (non-convectional) adsorbents, bone char, clay, limestone/clay mixture and silical gel to remove aromatic from DPK have been investigated. Effect of contact time, Adsorbent mass, pH and temperature on the rate of percentage aromatic removal was determined. Equilibrium studies showed that oxidized bone has the highest adsorption capacity. Analysis of variance (one-way) and multiple regression was used to rank the adsorbent in the order of highest selectivity for aromatics as follows: oxidized bone, carbonized bone, activated clay, Silica gel, limestone/clay and limestone. The results from this study can provide a basis for the understanding of adsorbate sorption mechanism. Keywords: Low cost, adsorbents, aromatic, equilibrium Introduction Straight run distillate kerosene solvent usually contains 15-25% of high boiling aromatic hydrocarbons. Very low aromatic content is needed particularly in the case of kerosene solvent for better odour (Concawe, 2005). The presence of aromatic compounds in kerosene not only give rise to bad odour but also decrease the flash point of kerosene making it unsafe for normal domestic or industrial use as fuel due to fire risk (Prasad, 2000). The need for odourless, non-corrosive and non-toxic kerosene has led to the development of various methods for aromatic removal. On both performance and toxicological grounds, there has been a growing interest over recent years for solvents that are essentially benzene-free, in some cases, practically aromatic free solvents are also demanded. (Hobson, 1994). There are some known expensive industrial processes for the deodorization of DPK, by aromatics removal. Although hydrotreating of DPK in the presence of Nickel catalyst is still commonly used in industry, this technique requires high technological know-how and expensive equipment, which puts it out of reach of the small and medium scale enterprises. The demand for a relatively cheap but volatile solvent especially in this nation’s cosmetic, varnish and aerosol industries has made the deodourization of Nigeria’s DPK of increasing significance. This fact has triggered off a lot of studies into the area of kerosene deodorization by various methods in recent years. Mutli-component adsorption with activated carbons and clay is a new approach, under serious study which has been found to be economically feasible, cheaper and easier. Adsorption, has proved very efficient in removing aromatics from kerosene(Digiano, 2004). Activated carbon is one of the most commonly used adsorbents in industry, but due to its high cost, thermal disintegration of the structure during regeneration which gives rise to 10-15% losses, the persistence of a grey tinge after treatment, have induced several investigators to search for alternative low-cost (non-convectional) adsorbents. The use of char from animal bone aim at furthering research efforts in the internal sourcing of local raw materials for adsorption processes coupled with the need for better management of non-