Adsorptive removal of heavy metals and organic dyes by sodium alginate/coffee waste composite hydrogel

Abstract

Heavy metals and dyes used in technological applications have a detrimental influence on human health and the environment. The most used methods for removing pollutants depend on high-cost materials. Therefore, this research was conducted on cost-effective alternatives derived from natural resources and food waste. Herein, we designed a composite hydrogel based on sodium alginate/coffee waste (Alg/coffee) as adsorbent for the removal of organic and inorganic pollutants from aquatic solutions. The selectivity study displayed that Alg/coffee is more effective in adsorbing Pb(II) and acridine orange dye (AO). Adsorption of Pb(II) and AO was studied at concentration range of 0–170 mgL−1 and 0–40 mgL−1. Adsorption data of Pb(II) and AO reveals their fitting to Langmuir-isotherm and pseudo-second-order-kinetic models. The findings demonstrated that Alg/coffee hydrogel are more effective than coffee powder itself with an adsorption (%) approaching 98.44 % of Pb(II) and 80.53 % of AO. Real sample analysis reveals the efficiency of Alg/coffee hydrogel beads in Pb(II) adsorption. The adsorption cycle was examined four times providing high efficiency toward Pb(II) and AO. Desorption of Pb(II) and AO was easily performed using HCl eluent. Thus, Alg/coffee hydrogel beads could be promising adsorbent for the removal of organic and inorganic pollutants.