Nickel (Ni) release into the environment has been increasing continuously as a result of man’s industrial activities and posses a significant threat to the environment and public health because of its toxicity, bioaccumulation in the food chain and persistence in nature ( Adriano, 1986; Alloway, 1995). Nickel input in the environment is mainly derived from phosphate fertilizers, pesticides, bio-solid sources, nickel electroplating, producing & using nickel catalysts, fabricating parts and structures by welding, flame spraying, cutting, grinding, and polishing of nickel containing alloys, manufacturing nickel cadmium batteries, constructing nickel molds in glass bottle factories and spraying nickel containing paints (Mellis et.al.,2004).). Nickel causes gastrointestinal irritation and lung cancer. Adsorption reactions occur at the solid/liquid interface and are the most important mechanisms for controlling the activity of metal ions in soil solution. In a complex system with amphoteric behavior, the comprehension of the mobility, availability and fate of pollutants in the soil system is crucial for the prediction of the environmental consequences and for development of prevention/remediation strategies. The most common remediation techniques are based on adsorption and precipitation phenomena. The present investigation was undertaken to employ alkaline soil of north-west India as a cheapest adsorbent to remove nickel from the water bodies having elevated nickel content.
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