High efficient removal of mercury from aqueous solution by polyaniline/humic acid nanocomposite

J Hazard Mater. 2010 Mar 15;175(1-3):404-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.10.019. Epub 2009 Oct 14.

Abstract

A composite sorbent PANI/HA was prepared by adding humic acid (HA) into chemical oxidation process of polyaniline (PANI). The sorbent was characterized by BET analysis, transmission electron microscopy, and FT-IR spectra. Batch adsorption results showed that the sorbent had high affinity to Hg(II) in aqueous solutions. The adsorption kinetics results of Hg(II) showed that the adsorption reached equilibrium within 200 min and adsorption rates could be described by pseudo-second-order kinetics. Sorption of Hg(II) to PANI/HA agreed well to the Langmuir adsorption model at different ionic strengths with the maximum adsorption capacity of 671 mg g(-1) (I=0.20 M). The experimental results showed solution pH values had a major impact on Hg(II) adsorption and with the help of HA the sorbent can effectively remove Hg(II) in a wide pH range (pH 4-7.5). An adsorption mechanism was proposed based on the XPS results.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adsorption
  • Aniline Compounds / chemistry*
  • Humic Substances / analysis*
  • Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
  • Ions
  • Kinetics
  • Mercury / chemistry
  • Mercury / isolation & purification*
  • Microscopy, Electron, Transmission / methods
  • Nanocomposites
  • Nanotechnology / methods
  • Porosity
  • Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared / methods
  • Water / chemistry
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical / chemistry
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical / isolation & purification
  • Water Purification / methods*

Substances

  • Aniline Compounds
  • Humic Substances
  • Ions
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical
  • polyaniline
  • Water
  • Mercury