[Objective] The aim was to study the mechanism of the removal effect of methylene blue(MB) by rice husk ash(RHA).[Method] The effects of contact time and pH on the adsorption of MB by rice husk ash were investigated,and the mechanism was discussed.[Result] RHA exhibited a remarkable ability on the adsorption of MB.The process of adsorption reached the equilibrium after 30 min,at about pH 9.The adsorption effect was explored with the aid of ion beam etching technique,which displayed that there were two main adsorption manners.One was the electrostatic interactions,through which the negatively charged RHA could adsorb the positively charged MB,the other was the porous effect due to the huge specific surface area of the micro/nano-scale porous silica in RHA,and MB could be adsorbed and deposited into the pores.[Conclusion] RHA could be used in the treatment of textile wastewater.Ion beam technology might be used as an effective way to investigate the adsorption effect.
