Kinetic Characteristics of Extraction of Copper(II) Cations from Aqueous Media by Chitosan–Silicon Dioxide Hydrogel Sorbent

Abstract

The efficiency of copper (II) ions extraction from aqueous media using newly developed sorbent based on chitosan and pyrogenic silicon dioxide has been experimentally confirmed. Kinetic parameters of the process were determined by processing the kinetic curves of copper sorption using models of the first and second order. It was found that as a result of the volumetric modification of chitosan granules with silicon dioxide, the sorption capacity of the material increases to 36 mg·g-1, compared with the granules of the original chitosan (9 mg·g-1). The degree of extraction of copper (II) ions reaches 99.5 % in this case. Infrared spectra and microphotographs of chitosan-silicon dioxide samples of the sorbent were studied. The value of the specific surface of the sorbent was calculated using Langmuir equation, BET and A.V. Kiselev’s methods.