Abstract
Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibers were prepared via electrospinning and were modified with diethylenetriamine (DETA) to fabricate surface-modified PAN fibers. The surface-modified PAN fibers were used to evaluate their adsorption capacity for the removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions. Batch adsorption experiments were performed to examine the effects of the modification process, initial concentration, initial pH, and adsorbent dose on the adsorption of Cu(II). Kinetic analysis revealed that the experimental data fitted the pseudo-second-order kinetic model better than the pseudo-first-order model. Adsorption equilibrium studies were conducted using the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm models, and the findings indicated that the PAN fibers modified with 85% DETA presented the highest adsorption capacity for Cu(II) of all analyzed samples. Moreover, the results revealed that the Freundlich model was more appropriate than the Langmuir one for describing the adsorption of Cu(II) onto the modified fibers at various initial Cu(II) concentrations. The maximum adsorption capacity was determined to be 87.77 mg/g at pH 4, and the percent removal of Cu(II) increased as the amount of adsorbent increased. Furthermore, the surface-modified PAN fibers could be easily regenerated using NaOH solution. Therefore, surface-modified PAN fibers could be used as adsorbents for the removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions.
Highlights
Environmental problems affect humans, animals, and plants worldwide
Surface-modified PAN fibers could be used as adsorbents for the removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions
Owing to the increasing environmental and economic impacts of heavy metal ions, their removal from industrial wastewater has been studied in depth [1]
Summary
Environmental problems affect humans, animals, and plants worldwide. In particular, rapid industrialization has increased water pollution, and water sanitation has become a significant global concern. Owing to the increasing environmental and economic impacts of heavy metal ions, their removal from industrial wastewater has been studied in depth [1]. Heavy metals, such as Cr, Cu, Fe, Pb, Ag, Ni, and Zn, which are highly toxic and nonbiodegradable, could cause problems for both the environment and living organisms [2]. The presence of heavy metal pollutants in water could lead to serious health problems, such as stomach aches, nausea, dehydration, dizziness, nervous system damage in young children, skin rashes, vomiting, abdominal pain, lung irritation, eye irritation, and liver damage [3].
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