Longan Shell as Novel Biomacromolecular Sorbent for Highly Selective Removal of Lead and Mercury Ions

Cation-exchange fibers and silver nanoparticles-modified carbon electrodes for selective removal of hardness ions and simultaneous deactivation of microorganisms in capacitive deionization

The hardness and microorganism contamination are common problems of water quality around the world. Capacitive deionization (CDI) is a much-discussed solution to help solve the water crisis by providing efficient water softening while killing microorganism. Carboxylic (Na) cation-exchange fiber (CCEF) is an adsorbent material with good affinity for hardness ions. Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) is a broad-spectrum microbicide. In this paper, the CCEF modified activated carbon (CCEF-AC) was used as cathode and showed excellent hardness ion adsorption selectivity at the optimum CCEF doping level (αCa2+/Na of 15.0, αMg2+/Na of 13.5). Its electrosorption capacity of Ca2+ reached 311 μmol/g, much higher than that of the AC cathode (188 μmol/g). It also showed good regenerable performance, retaining over 85 % of Ca2+ electrosorption capacity after 50 cycles stability test. The activated carbon modified with AgNPs (AC-Ag) was used as anode. When enhanced by an electric field, it could kill bacteria and microalgae with over 99 % and 90 % inhibition rates, respectively. This work has opened up a new way to simultaneously remove multiple pollutants (organic or inorganic) from water.

Effect of Cymbopogan citratus Fibre on Physical and Impact Properties of Thermoplastic Cassava Starch/Palm Wax Composites

Cymbopogan citratus fibre (CCF) is an agricultural waste plant derived from a natural cellulosic source of fibre that can be used in various bio-material applications. This paper beneficially prepared thermoplastic cassava starch/palm wax blends incorporated with Cymbopogan citratus fibre (TCPS/PW/CCF) bio-composites at different CCF concentrations of 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60 wt%. In contrast, palm wax loading remained constant at 5 wt% concentration using the hot moulding compression method. TCPS/PW/CCF bio-composites were characterised in the present paper via their physical and impact properties. The addition of CCF significantly improved impact strength by 50.65% until 50 wt% CCF loading. Furthermore, it was observed that the inclusion of CCF resulted in a little decrement in biocomposite solubility compared to neat TPCS/PW biocomposite from 28.68% to 16.76%. Water absorption showed higher water resistance in the composites incorporating 60 wt.% fibre loading. The TPCS/PW/CCF biocomposites with different fibre contents had 11.04-5.65% moisture content, which was lower than the control biocomposite. The thickness of all samples decreased gradually with increasing fibre content. Overall, these findings provide evidence that CCF waste can be utilised as a high-quality filler in biocomposites due to its diverse characteristics, including improving the properties of biocomposites and strengthening their structural integrity.

The removal of Cu(II) and Pb(II) ions from aqueous solutions by temperature-sensitive hydrogels based on N-isopropylacrylamide and itaconic acid

This study deals with the potential use of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-itaconic acid) temperature-sensitive hydrogels as an adsorbent for the removal of Cu(II) and Pb(II) ions from aqueous solutions. For this aim, the adsorption properties of hydrogels were examined by adsorption capacities, adsorption isotherm, and adsorption kinetics experiments. To describe the adsorption characteristics of hydrogels, the obtained experimental data were evaluated by Langmuir, Freundlich, Redlich-Peterson, and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherm models. Adsorption kinetics experiments were carried out not only in single systems but also in binary systems where both ions were at equal initial concentrations for competitive adsorption studies. To predict the behaviors of the competitive and non-competitive adsorption process of ions onto hydrogels, the experimental adsorption data were analyzed by the pseudo-first-order model and the pseudo-second-order model. According to non-competitive ion removal findings, the adsorption capacities followed order Cu(II) > Pb(II) for all hydrogels, and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model explained the adsorption properties of the hydrogels. Competitive ion removal studies showed that all hydrogels were selective to Cu(II) ion. Furthermore, in the case of comparative investigations both of competitive Cu(II) and competitive Pb(II) removal by hydrogels, the metal ion removal capacity of N10 hydrogel was found as a bit higher than that of N7.5 and N5 in 48 h. That is, as the acidic group content increased in the hydrogel network, the adsorption capacity values also increased. In addition, the reusability of temperature-sensitive hydrogels seems possible without regeneration or after regenerating with acid, in case the temperature is increased above the LCST. Furthermore, even if it cannot be reused, these hydrogels that retain metal ions reach very small volumes by shrinking when the LSCT is exceeded, and thus they can be eliminated more easily than other conventional gels due to their small size. As a result, this temperature-sensitive hydrogel may propose as an alternative environmentally friendly adsorbent candidate for can be used for water purification and wastewater treatment.

Novel conjugated hybrid material for efficient lead(II) capturing from contaminated wastewater

An efficient material is always welcoming for the water treatment due to the need of clean water to safe the human health. The conjugate adsorbent (CJA) was fabricated by functional ligand embedded onto the highly porous silica material for selective lead (Pb(II)) ion monitoring and removal from wastewater. The study was achieved not only investigating the beginning material but also the performing extrusion as novel conjugate material, this defining the material novelty of this study considers to the modern state-of-art. The fabricated material was characterized in all aspects and then the experimental works for Pb(II) ion assessing were carried in batch mode. The CJA was exposed the color and signal intensity upon addition of Pb(II) ion from low to high concentrations. The optimum pH was considered at 5.50 based on the sensitivity, the color formation ability and high adsorption of Pb(II) ion. The determined limit of low detection was 0.18 μg/L, which was the extraordinary performance for the Pb(II) ion monitoring ability by the CJA. The adsorption efficiency, specific attention was remunerated to the influence of solution pH, reaction time, foreign ion, initial Pb(II) amounts and regeneration. The CJA was exhibited high kinetic performances and showed high adsorption Pb(II) ion compared with the different forms of material. The adsorption was completely fitted with the Langmuir adsorption as defining the monolayer coverage as expected of the homogeneous porosity of the CJA. The maximum adsorption was determined as high as 175.16 mg/g. In addition, the foreign ions were not affected in the Pb(II) adsorption by the CJA, and the adsorbent was regenerated using 0.20 M HCl for several cycles used without significant loss of the initial performance. Considering these advantages, the CJA demonstrated the potential low-cost material for competitive use in wastewater remediation, especially in the developing countries.

Efficient removal of Pb(II) from aqueous solution by a novel ion imprinted magnetic biosorbent: Adsorption kinetics and mechanisms

It is vital to understand the adsorption mechanisms and identify the adsorption kinetics when applying an adsorbent to remove heavy metals from aqueous solution. A Pb(II) imprinted magnetic biosorbent (Pb(II)-IMB) was developed for the removal of Pb²⁺ via lead ion imprinting technology and crosslinking reactions among chitosan (CTS), Serratia marcescens and Fe₃O₄. The effect of different parameters such as solution pH, adsorbent dosage, selectivity sorption and desorption were investigated on the absorption of lead ion by Pb(II)-IMB. The adsorbent was characterized by a Brunauer-Emmett Teller (BET) analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD), vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS). The adsorption kinetics, equilibrium and thermodynamics of Pb(II)-IMB for Pb(II) were studied. The results of the abovementioned analyses showed that the adsorption kinetic process fit well with the second-order equation. The adsorption isotherm process of Pb(II) on the Pb(II)-IMB was closely related to the Langmuir model. Thermodynamic studies suggested the spontaneous and endothermic nature of adsorption of Pb(II) by Pb(II)-IMB. The adsorption mechanism of Pb(II)-IMB was studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results indicated that the nitrogen in the amino group and the oxygen in the hydroxyl group of Pb(II)-IMB were coordination atoms.

Preparation of a core-double shell chitosan-graphene oxide composite and investigation of Pb (II) absorption

The need for new and impactful materials to address the global problem of water pollution continues to be driving force in chemical research. This report presents the preparation of a core-double shell composite consisting of sand base substrate onto which sequential layers of chitosan and graphene oxide (GO) are deposited. The adsorption characteristics of this material for Pb (II) from aqueous solutions is investigated. Specifically, different initial lead concentrations are allowed to reach equilibrium with the chitosan-graphene oxide composites, after which the remaining abundance of lead in the aqueous phase is analyzed by atomic emission spectrometry. In many cases, the resulting equilibrium lead concentration of the treated water reached below the detection limit of the method used (<15 ppb) in less than three hours. Furthermore, the data from the adsorption experiments are plotted for comparison against two different isotherm models. This study suggests that the interaction between lead and the GO-chitosan composite more closely resembles characteristics anticipated by the Freundlich adsorption isotherm than that expected by Langmuir-like properties.

Efficient Removal of Lead Ions from Water by a Low-Cost Alginate-Melamine Hybrid Sorbent

A low-cost alginate-melamine hybrid sorbent (named as Alg-Mel) was designed and synthesized for the removal of Pb2+ from water. The as-prepared Alg-Mel sorbent exhibited high affinity and selectivity to Pb2+. The selectivity coefficients of the Alg-Mel for Pb2+/Cd2+, Pb2+/Cu2+, Pb2+/Cr3+ and Pb2+/Co2+ were all over 7. It is found that the hybrid sorbent could uptake 95.4% of Pb2+ from Pb2+-containing solutions (0.48 mM), and the maximum adsorption capacity for Pb2+ reaches 1.39 mmol/g (287.7 mg/g), which is much higher than that of most reported lead ion-sorbents. Furthermore, the Alg-Mel can be regenerated by a simple acid-washing process and used repeatedly. The results of adsorption mechanism analysis reveal that the adsorption of Pb2+ by Alg-Mel is mainly ascribed to the chemical coordination and ion exchange effects.

Application of longan shell as non-conventional low-cost adsorbent for the removal of cationic dye from aqueous solution

With simple physical treatment, adsorption potential of longan shell for the methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution was studied as a low-cost material under the conditions of adsorbent dosage (1-6 g/L), initial solution pH (2-12), contact time (5-180 min), temperature (293, 313, 313 K) and initial dye concentration (100-500 mg/L). The SEM images and FTIR spectra of longan shell before and after dye adsorption were analyzed to understand the adsorption process of MB onto longan shell. The kinetic data and the equilibrium data were simulated by different kinetic and isotherm models, respectively. The results showed that the adsorption process was well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model, and the experimental equilibrium data were better fit to Langmuir equation than Freundlich equation with the maximum adsorption capacity of 141.04 mg/g. In addition, main activation parameters (E(a), ΔH(#), ΔS(#) and ΔG(#)) and thermodynamic parameters (ΔG°, ΔH° and ΔS°) of the absorption process were also determined.

Advanced material and approach for metal ions removal from aqueous solutions

A Novel approach to remove metals from aqueous solutions has been developed. The method is based on a resin free, solid, non-toxic, microcrystalline bisphosphonate material, which has very low solubility in water (59 mg/l to ion free Milli-Q water and 13 mg/l to 3.5% NaCl solution). The material has been produced almost quantitatively on a 1 kg scale (it has been prepared also on a pilot scale, ca. 7 kg) and tested successfully for its ability to collect metal cations from different sources, such as ground water and mining process waters. Not only was this material highly efficient at collecting several metal ions out of solution it also proved to be regenerable and reusable over a number of adsorption/desorption, which is crucial for environmental friendliness. This material has several advantages compared to the currently used approaches, such as no need for any precipitation step.

Combinatorial screening of potentiometric Pb(II) sensors from polysulfoaminoanthraquinone solid ionophore

A potentiometric Pb(II)-selective sensor was fabricated by a combinatorial screening of electrically conducting polysulfoaminoanthraquinone (PSA) nanoparticles as a solid ionophore, ion exchangers (oleic acid (OA) and NaTPB), plasticizers in a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) matrix, membrane thickness, inner filling ion species, and concentration. The membrane sensor with the composition of PSA/PVC/DOP (dioctyl phthalate)/OA (1.0:33:61:5.0) exhibited the best performance, including a slope of 29.3 mV decade(-1) in the concentration range 10(-6.3)-10(-1.6) M, detection limit of 1.6 × 10(-7) M, response time of 16 s, lifetime of five months, and good response reversibility. The proposed sensor has demonstrated good selectivity for Pb(II) over other monovalent, divalent and trivalent interfering ions, and could be used in a pH range of 3.62-5.22. The Pb(II) sensor has been successfully applied for the determination of Pb(II) concentration in real-world samples and also as an indicator electrode for potentiometric titration of lead ions.

Fast Removal of Cu (II) from Aqueous Solutions by PET Nanofibrous Membrane Modified with Acryamide

A novel nanofibrous membrane was used for removing Cu (II) from aqueous solutions. The poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) membranes were fabricated by electrospinning, and then grafted with acrylamide (AM) on the surface. The morphologies of the nanofiber was characterized by SEM, meanwhile, the chemical composition and element analysis on the membrane surface were measured by FT-IR and XPS, respectively. The Cu (II) adsorption experiment investigated the adsorption performance related to the pH value on. Equilibrium studies show that the adsorption process follows Langmuir model and the maximum adsorption capacity was estimated to be 183.25 [mg/g].

Application of Ulva lactuca and Systoceira stricta algae-based activated carbons to hazardous cationic dyes removal from industrial effluents

Marine algae Ulva lactuca (ULV-AC) and Systoceira stricta (SYS-AC) based activated carbons were investigated as potential adsorbents for the removal of hazardous cationic dyes. Both algae were surface oxidised by phosphoric acid for 2 and subsequently air activated at 600 °C for 3 h. Dyes adsorption parameters such as solution pH, contact time, carbon dosage, temperature and ionic strength were measured in batch experiments. Adsorption capacities of 400 and 526 mg/g for Malachite green and Safranine O by the SYS-AC and ULV-AC respectively were significantly enhanced by the chemical treatments. Model equations such as Langmuir, Freundlich and Temkin isotherms were used to analyse the adsorption equilibrium data and the best fits to the experimental data were provided by the first two isotherm models. BET, FT-IR, iodine number and methylene blue index determination were also performed to characterize the adsorbents. To describe the adsorption mechanism, kinetic models such as pseudo-second-order and the intra particle diffusion were applied. Thermodynamic analysis of the adsorption processes of both dyes confirms their spontaneity and endothermicity. Increasing solution ionic strength increased significantly the adsorption of Safranine O. This study shows that surface modified algae can be an alternative to the commercially available adsorbents for dyes removal from liquid effluents.

Facile preparation of hierarchical polyaniline-lignin composite with a reactive silver-ion adsorbability

A hierarchical polyaniline-lignin (PANI-EHL) composite was facilely prepared from aniline and enzymatic hydrolysis lignin in an aqueous solution of ammonia. The morphology, FTIR, UV-vis spectra, thermogravimetric analysis, and wide-angle X-ray diffraction analyses of the composite were systematically investigated. Furthermore, the sorption property of the PANI-EHL composite for silver ions in aqueous solution was studied via a static sorption technique. The result demonstrated that the PANI-EHL composite possessed a strongly reactive sorption characteristic for silver ions. Serrated silver threads with length up to 10 mm were obtained by using the PANI-EHL composite as a low-cost adsorbent. Moreover, the role of EHL and polyaniline in the PANI-EHL composite for silver ions sorption was investigated. The investigation indicated that the EHL unit could play a vital role in the chelation of silver ions, whereas the polyaniline unit played a leading role in redox sorption.

Active carbons prepared by chemical activation of plum stones and their application in removal of NO2

A technology of obtaining active carbon from plum stones by chemical activation with KOH is described. The effect of carbonisation temperature as well as activation procedure on the textural parameters, acid-base character of the surface and sorption properties of active carbons has been checked. The sorption properties of the activated carbons obtained were characterised by determination of nitrogen dioxide adsorption in dry and wet conditions. The final products were microporous activated carbons of well-developed surface area varying from 2174 to 3228 m(2)/g and pore volume from 1.09 to 1.61 cm(3)/g, showing different acid-base character of the surface. The results obtained in our study have proved that a suitable choice of the carbonisation and activation procedure for plum stones can produce activated carbons with high capacity of nitrogen dioxide, reaching to 67 and 42 mg NO(2)/g in dry and wet conditions, respectively. The results of our study have also shown that the adsorption ability of carbonaceous sorbents depends both on the method of preparation as well as on the textural parameters and acid-base properties of their surface.