Synthesis of ion-imprinted polymers for speciation analysis of chromium(III)

Abstract

A new sorbent based on ion-imprinted polymers has been successfully synthesized to examine chromium(III) in environmental water samples. In this study, Cr(III)−IIPs was synthesized using Cr(III)−DPCO complex as a templating molecule, and ethylene glycol dimethacrylate (EGDMA), methacrylic acid (MAA), and benzoyl peroxide (BPO) as crosslinking agent, functional monomer, and radical initiator, respectively. The fabricated Cr(III)−IIPs polymer was characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and Scanning electron microscope (SEM). The FTIR results confirm that Cr(III)−IIPs has been successfully synthesized. A peak at 495 cm-1 indicated the stretching vibrations of Cr−N. The firm peaks at 1732 cm-1 and 1163 cm-1 are assigned to C=O and C−O stretching vibrations of methacrylic acid. The broad and strong peak at 3483 cm-1 corresponded to hydroxyl bonds between the templating molecule and functional monomer. The SEM images revealed that the morphology of the polymer was irregular and large. The Imprinting factor (IF) values of Cr(III)−IIPs/NIPs−DPCO and Cr(III)−IIPs/NIPs were 3.12 and 1.53, respectively. The sorbent developed by this technique can be selective to the target ions.