Modifying alginate beads using polycarboxyl component for enhanced metal ions removal.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Environmental Science
• Chemistry

Background:

• Heavy metal ion contamination poses significant environmental and health risks.
• Developing efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly adsorbents is crucial for water remediation.
• Alginate and polyacrylate are abundant, biodegradable materials with potential for adsorbent development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and synthesize a novel bead-like adsorbent for highly efficient heavy metal ion removal.
• To investigate the adsorption capacity, kinetics, and mechanisms of the developed adsorbent.
• To evaluate the reusability and selectivity of the adsorbent for practical water treatment applications.

Main Methods:

• Modification of alginate beads with polyacrylate to create a high-density carboxyl group adsorbent.
• Comprehensive characterization using FT-IR, TGA, SEM, and XPS.
• Adsorption experiments were conducted by varying pH, contact time, and initial concentration.
• Adsorption data were analyzed using Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models and Pseudo-second-order kinetic model.

Main Results:

• The alginate/polyacrylate beads demonstrated a maximum adsorption capacity of 611.0 mg/g for heavy metal ions, particularly lead.
• Adsorption followed the Freundlich isotherm model and Pseudo-second-order kinetic model, indicating multi-layer adsorption dominated by chemical interactions.
• The adsorbent exhibited excellent reusability over eight sequential cycles with high adsorption efficiency.

Conclusions:

• The developed alginate/polyacrylate bead adsorbent is highly effective for heavy metal ion removal from water.
• Its cost-effectiveness, reusability, and high adsorption capacity make it a promising material for environmental remediation.
• The study highlights the potential of modified natural polymers for sustainable water treatment solutions.