Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate)/BN nanohybride: Enhanced adsorption of antibiotic pollutant removal from wastewater

Abstract

Increasing wastewater pollution by pharmaceutical waste poses a serious threat to environmental safety and public health, so sorbents with high adsorption capacity and removal efficiency are in high demand. To address this important problem, a novel pellet sorbent containing (2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate)-modified BN nanoparticles (pHEMA/BN) was produced by a combination of CVD synthesis (BN), solution method (pHEMA/BN nanoparticles) and uniaxial pressing (pHEMA/BN pellets) and studied for the adsorption of tetracycline (TC) and linezolid (LNZ) from aqueous solutions. Characterization techniques, including scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, have provided insight into adsorbent microstructure and specific surface area. At an initial antibiotic concentration of 100 mg/L, pHEMA/BN adsorbent demonstrated an 84–88 % increase in equilibrium adsorption capacity after 24 h and an 86–89 % increase in antibiotic removal efficiency compared to unmodified BN. Molecular dynamics calculations revealed robust interactions between the polymer and BN, accompanied by an electron density redistribution. And density functional theory calculations showed the formation of multiple hydrogen bonds between the polymer hydroxyl groups and the antibiotic functional groups. Adsorption kinetics analysis suggested that pHEMA/BN adsorption involves both physical interaction and chemisorption. The pHEMA/BN material demonstrates good reusability with an adsorption efficiency >90 % after three sorption cycles with sorbent regeneration between cycles. These results highlight the high potential of pHEMA/BN adsorbents for practical applications in drinking water and wastewater treatment, offering versatility and efficiency in the pharmaceutical contaminant adsorption, thereby facilitating the development of more cost-effective and sustainable wastewater treatment methods compared to conventional adsorbents.