Removal of Cu(II) and Cr(VI) ions from aqueous solution using chelating fiber packed column: Equilibrium and kinetic studies

Herein, we demonstrate the adsorption process system with the diethylenetriamne coupled polyacrylonitrile fiber for the removal of Cu(II) and Cr(VI) ions in the aqueous solution. The synthesized chelating fiber showed a high adsorption capacity of 11.4 mequiv/g. Interestingly, the crystal growth of copper ions on the chelating fiber was observed during the adsorption process. The chelating fiber packed column showed the high performance of the removal of Cu(II) in the aqueous solution due to the distinct characteristic of the crystal growth of metal ions on the chelating fiber. After Cu(II) adsorption on the chelating fiber, the color of the fiber changed to light blue from yellow. The isotherm parameter n of 1.991 was obtained with Freundlich isotherm model for the adsorption equilibrium study which indicates that Cu(II) adsorption on the chelating fiber is very favorable due to n > 1. The pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order model equations were used for the kinetic study. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.