Removal of phenols from the water effluents of olive presses

The water effluents of olive presses contain a number of phenols that are hardly biodegradable and therefore constitute an environmental hazard, mainly in the Mediterranean countries. The present work presents the results obtained from the study of artificial solutions containing one kind of phenol, namely gallic acid that consists of the main type of phenols present.

According to the experimental procedure, the phenol is removed from the water solution by absorption on different naturally occurring raw rock materials. The first material is caustic magnesia produced after the calcination of a magnesite sample from Macedonia, Greece, the second is a sample of sedimentary psammitic marl from the area of Chania, Crete, Greece, and the third solid absorbent is a bentonite sample from the island of Milos, Greece.

According to the results obtained, magnesia seems to be by far the best absorbent, with an absorbing capacity of 3500 mg of phenol per gram, followed by the psammitic marl. The absorbing capacity of bentonite is almost negligible