The wastewater from electroplating, manufacturing and metal industries contains many heavy metals. The presence of such heavy metals pose threat to human and aquatic animals. Among these heavy metals copper causes neurotoxicity and it is carcinogenic. Copper cannot be removed by biological process because it is not biodegradable. Generally, adsorption is the most suitable method for removal of heavy metals. In this study an attempt has been made in which nanofibers synthesized from corn cob (Agro- waste) are utilized for removal of copper. The characterization study of corn cob nanofibers has been made to check its applicability. In this study the effect of various factors such as dosage of adsorbent, contact tine and initial concentration of copper removal was studied. The developed adsorbent has adsorption capacity of 53.80 m2 gm-1. The applicability of isotherm models was also studied. The study revealed that for lower adsorbent dosages Langmuir isotherms is suitable and for higher adsorbent dosages Freundlich isotherm performs better than Langmuir isotherm.

Corn Cob Nanofibers, Agro-Waste, Copper, Synthesis of Carbon Nanofibers.