Water decontamination by metal–organic framework: experimental and statistical optimization

Abstract

In the current work, the adsorption of bisphenol A (BPA) was investigated using a metal–organic framework (MIL-100). MIL-100 was prepared using a homemade microwave oven and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, and physisorption analysis based on the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller BET surface area. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the adsorption conditions, i.e., pH and the initial concentrations of BPA and the adsorbent; the BPA adsorption was considered the response. Using a central composite design (CCD), we obtained an experimental model validated by ANOVA and the interaction of two significant factors using RSM to the response. The laboratory experiments using MIL-100 revealed excellent adsorption activity toward BPA in water. The optimum conditions for BPA removal were 1.0 mg MIL-100 concentration and 200 mg/L initial BPA concentration. Under these conditions, the maximum adsorption of 1400 mg/g, which was higher than that previously reported, was obtained due to the favorable physicochemical properties of the adsorbent, such as large surface area, high porosity, and high stability. These results showed that MIL-100 can be an effective adsorbent for water decontamination by BPA removal; furthermore, statistical analysis can be used for adsorption tests, thereby reducing the number of experiments and making the analysis environmentally friendly.