Person:
Prof. Charitha Jayaruk Thambiliyagodage

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https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0906-4441

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https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=kdc5vsQAAAAJ

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Prof. Charitha Jayaruk Thambiliyagodage

Biography

Jayaruk is a graduate of the University of Colombo. He pursued his PhD in Chemistry from The University of Alabama, USA. He has specialized in Materials, Analytical and Physical Chemistry. Currently, he is working as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Applied Sciences, SLIIT. He is the coordinator of the BSc Biotechnology degree programme. He has been awarded the chartered chemist designation by the Institute of Chemistry, Ceylon. He supervises Postgraduate students at the University of Colombo and the University of Kelaniya and supervises undergraduate students at the Institute of Chemistry. He is interested in doing research on using nanomaterials in water purification and as antimicrobial reagents. Further, he is interested in researching on algae and plant materials for their pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical activities. He has specialized in many instruments like Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), X-Ray Diffractometer (XRD), X-Ray Photoelectron Spectrometer (XPS), Gas chromatograph-Mass spectrometer (GC-MS), Raman Spectrometer, FT-IR spectrometer, UV-Visible Spectrophotometer, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analyzer etc. He is interested in practical-based science education and believes in uplifting the research culture among upcoming scientists in the country.

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Application of nanomaterials for water purification Novel nanomaterials incorporated cosmeceuticals and pharmaceuticals Natural material based neutraceuticals Alternative energy sources Novel packaging materials Environmental Chemistry

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    PublicationOpen Access
    Kinetics and Thermodynamics Study of Methylene Blue Adsorption to Sucrose- and Urea-Derived Nitrogen-Enriched, Hierarchically Porous Carbon Activated by KOH and H3PO4
    (American Chemical Society, 2023-04-27) Liyanaarachchi, H; Thambiliyagodage, C; Lokuge, H; Vigneswaran, S
    Hierarchically porous nitrogen-enriched carbon materials synthesized by polymerization of sucrose and urea (SU) were activated by KOH and H3PO4 (SU-KOH and SU-H3PO4, respectively). Characterization was undertaken and the synthesized materials were tested for their ability to adsorb methylene blue (MB). Scanning electron microscopic images along with the Brunauer−Emmett−Teller (BET) surface area analysis revealed the presence of a hierarchically porous system. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirms the surface oxidation of SU upon activation with KOH and H3PO4. The best conditions for removing dyes utilizing both activated adsorbents were determined by varying the pH, contact time, adsorbent dosage, and dye concentration. Adsorption kinetics were evaluated, and the adsorption of MB followed second-order kinetics, suggesting the chemisorption of MB to both SU-KOH and SUH3PO4. Times taken to reach the equilibrium by SU-KOH and SU-H3PO4 were 180 and 30 min, respectively. The adsorption isotherm data were fitted to the Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, and Dubinin models. Data were best described by the Temkin isotherm model for SU-KOH and the Freundlich isotherm model for SU-H3PO4. Thermodynamics of the adsorption of MB to the adsorbent was determined by varying the temperature in the range of 25−55 °C. Adsorption of MB increased with increasing temperature, suggesting that the adsorption process is endothermic. The highest adsorption capacities of SU-KOH and SU-H3PO4 (1268 and 897 mg g−1 , respectively) were obtained at 55 °C. Synthesized adsorbents were effective in removing MB for five cycles with some loss in activity. The results of this study show that SU activated by KOH and H3PO4 are environmentally benign, favorable, and effective adsorbents for MB adsorption.