Abstract
This study reports that the selective adsorption of metal ion from an aqueous solution is possible using partially burnt hair (PBH) particles. PBH was a brittle stable solid under normal air and moisture conditions. Scanning electron microscope images show that PBH has many small pores (diameters 1~2μm). The pore formation indicates that the surface of PBH has different physicochemical properties than the bulk of hairs. Weight loss of the human hair tested was 30% at 300℃ and 70% at 500℃. Several common metal ions (ie, Ag+, Pb2+, Cu2+, and Fe2+) were included in our adsorption test. Among them, PBH particles exhibited the greatest adsorption capacity for silver ion, with a selectivity order of Ag+>Pb2+>Cu2+> Fe2+. The maximum adsorption rate was 98.5% (Ag+ solution), 45% (Pb2+ solution), 18.5% (Cu2+ solution), and 4.3% (Fe2+ solution). These results show that human hair has great potential to resolve heavy metal pollution from environment. It has been suggested that PBH particles could be a suitable candidate for the development of anti-pollution cosmetic products.
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