Removal of amitriptyline from simulated gastric and intestinal fluids using activated carbons

Abstract

In this work, the adsorption behavior of a tricyclic antidepressant, amitriptyline hydrochloride, onto several activated carbons (ACs) is reported. The adsorption was done using in vitro simulated gastric and intestinal fluid at 37◦C to test the performance of the carbons as treatment in overdose cases. The tested materials were one commercial AC (carbomix) and two ACs produced in our laboratory. The highest adsorption capacity was achieved by carbomix, followed by the laboratory-made carbons that still have a very good performance with adsorption capacity up to 120 and 100 mg/g for the gastric and intestinal fluids, respectively.