Heterocyclic modification of chitosan for the adsorption of Cu (II) and Cr (VI) ions

ABSTRACTA heterocyclic modification of chitosan has been attempted for development of an effective adsorbent material for removal of metal ions. The modified polymer was characterized using infrared (IR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and x-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The adsorption capacity exhibited for Cu (II) and Cr (VI) were 83.75 and 85.0 mgg−1, respectively, which is a significant improvement over chitosan. The adsorption on the modified polymer was a second-order kinetic process and followed Langmuir isotherm model. The thermodynamic analysis indicated exothermic and spontaneous nature of adsorption. About 80% of the adsorbed metal ions were desorbed in appropriate stripping solutions indicating reusability.