Abstract
A polyurethane (PU) foam composite, loaded with iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs), was developed for arsenic removal from drinking water at low concentrations. The effect of various synthesis parameters such as the size of IONPs and the foam shape, on the performance of the adsorbents in removing arsenic was investigated. To examine the surface adsorption of arsenic species, Energy Dispersive X-ray Microscopy (EDX) was utilized. Mercury Porosimetry was used to analyze the porosity and density of the PU-IONPs nanocomposites. Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS) was conducted to measure the arsenic concentration in the treated solutions. Kinetic models were applied to determine the mechanisms which control the adsorption process. A pseudo-second-order model was found to be the best fit model for the adsorption data. Experimental results revealed that decreasing the size of IONPs from 50 - 100 nm to 15 - 20 nm yields a higher removal capacity. In addition, granular adsorbents exhibit higher removal capacity compared to cubical shaped adsorbents in the order of 20% - 100%.
Highlights
Heavy metal pollutants such as Lead, Arsenic, Cadmium, and Mercury are the main sources of water contamination
The present study introduces a new bulk modified nanocomposite material by using iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) impregnated in PU foam for arsenic removal
Adsorption batch experiments were performed to investigate the effect of IONPs size on the removal capacity of the adsorbent foams
Summary
Heavy metal pollutants such as Lead, Arsenic, Cadmium, and Mercury are the main sources of water contamination. Other treatment techniques for arsenic removal are lime softening, flotation and adsorption on hydrated iron oxide or activated carbon, ion exchange, and reverse osmosis [6]-[12]. A new bulk modified nanocomposite material (adsorbent) is developed by loading iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) inside a polyurethane (PU) foam matrix This allows for exploiting the inherent advantages of porous PU foam structures and flexibility, combined with the functionality of the adsorbent nano particles imbedded in the foam media, which facilitate the post treatment step in the filtration system. The ability of iron compounds to react with arsenic species by adsorption and ion exchange mechanisms increases the arsenic removal capacity
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