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Next‐generation organometallic adsorbents for safe removal of excessive fluoride from aqueous systems
Author(s) -
Khan Huma,
Sharma Saroj
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.46993
Subject(s) - adsorption , fluoride , aqueous solution , water treatment , acrylonitrile , leaching (pedology) , chemistry , zirconium , chemical engineering , materials science , nuclear chemistry , inorganic chemistry , organic chemistry , polymer , environmental engineering , environmental science , soil science , engineering , copolymer , soil water
The presence of excessive fluoride contamination in aquatic environments causes large‐scale health problems affecting about 260 million people across the globe. Here we have investigated a novel method to develop zirconium‐based organometallic nanoadsorbents (ZrAN) for the removal of fluoride from aqueous systems. A series of ZrAN adsorbents composed of zirconyl methacrylate (ZrDMA) and acrylonitrile (AN) have been developed by varying the relative amounts of crosslinker, porogen, and comonomers. The spherical adsorbents have high porosity and excellent mechanical stability, properties that prevent material breakage and mass loss during practical use. Experimental factors such as effects of pH, initial fluoride concentration, adsorbent dose, coexisting anions, pH pzc , isotherm models, and surface chemistry were investigated to clarify the adsorption properties of ZrAN. A high adsorption capacity of 46 mg/g was recorded with a high fluoride concentration of 60 mg/L, which outperformed many other reported adsorbents. Moreover, the ZrAN adsorbent performed well over a considerable pH range of 2–10 with significant removal at pH 6–8, which is the preferred range for groundwater applications. Additionally, the results of the toxicity characteristics leaching procedure suggested the ZrAN adsorbents were inert, do not leach out any contaminants (Zr, F − ), and deliver safe and potable treated water. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019 , 136 , 46993.