A Study on Removal of Contamination in Ground Water by Bricks Powder of Udaipurwati Block in Jhunjhunu District

Abstract: Water pollution in groundwater is an environmental and human health emergency in semi-arid areas of Rajasthan, India. The Jhunjhunu District, especially the Udaipurwati Block in the Shekhawati region, is particularly susceptible to high levels of fluoride, nitrate, arsenic, total dissolved solids (TDS), and heavy metals in groundwater resources. This research question examines the effectiveness of locally sourced brick powder, a low-cost, sustainable adsorbent made from fired clay, as a remediation agent for removing major groundwater contaminants under controlled laboratory conditions. There were 30 bore wells and hand pumps spread across six revenue villages of Udaipurwati Block, where groundwater was sampled. Physicochemical sample characterisation was performed in accordance with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS 10500:2012) and the WHO (2017) standards. To determine the efficiency of brick powder in removing fluoride, nitrate, arsenic, iron, lead, and turbidity, batch adsorption experiments were conducted at different adsorbent doses (0.5-5.0 g/L), contact times (15-120 minutes), and pH values (4-10). Findings showed that the efficiency of brick powder for fluoride removal reached 84.6 per cent at a dosage of 4.0 g/L and a contact time of 90 minutes at neutral pH. The removal of nitrate was 71.3, and that of arsenic was about 67.8. The adsorption isotherm was Langmuirian (R2 = 0.981), indicating monolayer adsorption on a homogeneous surface. Pseudo-second-order kinetics was found to be the predominant mechanism in kinetic studies. The research finds that the local brick powder from the Udaipurwati brick kilns is a viable, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly adsorbent that can be implemented as a decentralised water treatment solution for rural populations in the Jhunjhunu District.