Adsorption of Chromium from an Aqueous Solution onto Chitosan Beads Modified with Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate (SDS)

Abstract

The goal of this research is to make chitosan beads that have been treated with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) to remove chromium (Cr) from an aqueous solution effectively. The successful synthesis of the SDS-chitosan was proven through characterization, which were carried out using by scanning electron microscopy–energy dispersive X–ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The adsorption of Cr on the SDS material was investigated by varying experimental conditions such as pH, contact time and adsorbent dosage. The maximum adsorption capacity of SDS-chitosan for Cr(III) was estimated to be 3.42 mg·g−1 and 3.23 mg·g−1 for Cr(VI). Based on the results of adsorption kinetics and isothermal models, the adsorption process conform to the pseudo-second-order and Langmuir isotherm models. This indicates that the adsorption of Cr on SDS-chitosan is mainly dominated by chemical adsorption and monolayer reaction. In addition, according to thermodynamic analyses, the adsorption of Cr is an endothermic reaction. These results show that the new adsorbent has obvious application prospect for removing Cr.