The use of alum as a coagulant throughout the process of drinking water treatment produces alum sludge as a by-product. The quantity of the sludge is enormous, so it is essential to manage and dispose appropriately. Conventionally, the authority of water treatment plant deposited the sludge in waste disposal area (landfill). To reduce the solid waste, many studies and research was done to utilize the use of this alum sludge. The reuse of this aluminium sludge as a solid adsorbent is one of the proposed applications, but alteration and characterization are required for this study. A batch process was developed to evaluate the potential of alum sludge for lead and phosphorus removal. The alum sludge undergoes chemical pre-treatment to enhance the adsorption capacity of the adsorbent (alum sludge). The dosages of alum sludge, concentration of heavy metal and pH were affecting the removal capacity was studied. The percentage of removal were nearly 100 % of both heavy metals Results demonstrated that alum sludge from water treatment plant is potential as adsorbent for removal of heavy metal.
