Carbonized ZIF-8/chitosan biomass imprinted hybrid carbon aerogel for phenol selective removal from wastewater

In this work, carbonized ZIF-8/chitosan imprinted hybrid carbon aerogel (MIP@CZIF-8/CS) is constructed. The introduction of CZIF-8 effectively optimizes the specific surface area (664 m² g^-1) of imprinted matrix and further enhances the nitrogen atom doping, leading the increased adsorption sites and the formation of superhydrophilic surface. MIP@CZIF-8/CS exhibits a remarkable phenol adsorption capacity (246.6 mg g^-1) at pH of 7 and shows excellent selective adsorption towards phenol against its structural analogues. The adsorption kinetics and isotherms of MIP@CZIF-8/CS follow pseudo-second-order and Langmuir-Freundlich models, respectively. Besides, MIP@CZIF-8/CS with monolithic structure can support about 4167 times its own weight. Thanks to its monolithic structure and excellent mechanical stability, MIP@CZIF-8/CS maintains 94 % adsorption capacity after 10 cycle tests and does not contaminate application system. In addition, MIP@CZIF-8/CS can realize the dynamic filtration of phenol in fixed bed column system. The effluent phenol concentration conforms to GB8978-1996, proving its practical application potential.