High extraction ability of 1,3-dialkynyl calixarene towards mercury(II) ion

Abstract The reaction of 1,3-dipropyn-2-yloxycalix[4]arene with mercury(II) acetate could give mercury-containing alkynyl calixarene polymer. The extraction behavior of 1,3-dipropyn-2-yl-oxycalix[4]arene towards mercury(II) ion was examined. When the mole ratio of Hg 2+ /calixarene was 1:1, the extractive percent can reach to 99.1%, and the extraction capacity was up to 431 mg/g. It could also decrease the Hg 2+ concentration from 5 to 0.85 mg/L, which was only 17% of the national standard of effluent and satisfied the national standard of drinking water. The extraction process included chemical reaction.