Sorbent Based on Polyvinyl Butyral and Potassium Polytitanate for Purifying Wastewater from Heavy Metal Ions

Currently, the rapid development of industry leads to an increase in negative anthropogenic impacts on the environment, including water ecosystems. This circumstance entails toughening environmental standards and, in particular, requirements for the content of pollutants in wastewater. As a result, developing technical and cost-effective ways for wastewater purification becomes relevant. This study is devoted to the development of a novel composite sorbent, based on polyvinyl butyral and potassium polytitanate, designed to purify water from heavy metal ions. The co-deposition of a mixture based on a polymer solution and a filler suspension was used to obtain a composite material. In this work, the influence of the deposition conditions on the structure and properties of the resulting composites was studied, as well as the optimal ratio of components, including solvent, precipitant, polymer binder, and filler, were established. In the course of this study on the sorption properties of the developed composite materials using various sorption models, the sorption capacity of the obtained material, the sorption mechanism, and the limiting stage of the sorption process were determined. The developed sorbent can be suitably used in the wastewater treatment systems of galvanic industries, enterprises producing chemical current sources, and in other areas.