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Hexavalent chromium removal from aqueous solution using functionalized chitosan as a novel nano-adsorbent: modeling and optimization, kinetic, isotherm, and thermodynamic studies, and toxicity testing

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Abstract

Hexavalent chromium is a highly toxic metal that can enter drinking water sources. Chitosan, which contains amino and hydroxyl functional groups, is considered an appropriate candidate to remove heavy metals through absorption. In this study, a novel adsorbent, magnetic nanoparticles of chitosan modified with polyhexamethylene biguanide (Ch-PHMB NPs) was synthesized and was used to successfully remove chromium from aqueous solution. Quadratic models with independent variables including pH, adsorbent dosage, time, and the initial concentration of chromium were proposed through RSM to describe the behavior of both magnetic chitosan (M-Ch) and Ch-PHMB NPs in Cr(VI) removal. Optimized models with adjusted R2 values of 0.8326 and 0.74 for M-Ch and Ch-PHMB NPs were developed. Cr(VI) removal from aqueous solution by both absorbents followed pseudo-second-order kinetics. The experimental data were best fitted to the Temkin and Freundlich models for M-Ch and Ch-PHMB NPs, respectively. M-Ch and Ch-PHMB NPs can effectively remove the hexavalent chromium from aqueous solution with pH above 7. Ch-PHMB NPs have higher removal efficiency than M-Ch, removing up to 70% of Cr(VI) from aqueous solution. However, toxicity evaluation on Daphnia magna revealed that Ch-PHMB NPs was more toxic than M-Ch nanoparticles.

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Abbreviations

BET:

Brunauer–Emmett–Teller

C0 :

Initial concentration of chromium solution

Ce :

Equilibrium concentration of chromium solution

CCD:

Central composite design

Ch-PHMB:

Magnetic nanoparticles of chitosan modified with PHMB.

D. magna :

Daphnia magna

FTIR:

Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy

LOF:

Lack of fit

M-Ch:

Magnetic chitosan

NPs:

Nanoparticles

PHMB:

Polyhexamethylene biguanide

RSM:

Response surface methodology

SEM:

Scanning electron microscope

TGA:

Thermogravimetric analysis

V:

Volume of chromium solution

W:

Weight of the adsorbent

X1 :

pH (dimensionless)

X2 :

Adsorbent dose

X3 :

Time

X4 :

Initial concentration of chromium

Xi :

Variables of action, termed factors

XRD:

X-ray diffraction

Y:

Response of the system–adsorption of chromium (%)

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Acknowledgments

This research was a part of a master’s thesis at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences. The authors would like to thank all the staff in the chemistry laboratory of the Department of Environmental Health Engineering for their assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Health and Environment Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran

    Hassan Aslani

  2. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Health, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran

    Hassan Aslani

  3. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Tayebeh Ebrahimi Kosari, Simin Naseri & Ramin Nabizadeh

  4. Center for Water Quality Research, Institute for Environmental Research (IER), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Simin Naseri

  5. Center for Air Quality Research, Institute for Environmental Research (IER), Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Ramin Nabizadeh

  6. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School Health, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran

    Mohammad Khazaei

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  1. Hassan Aslani
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  2. Tayebeh Ebrahimi Kosari
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  3. Simin Naseri
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Correspondence to Simin Naseri.

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Responsible editor: Guilherme L. Dotto

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Aslani, H., Ebrahimi Kosari, T., Naseri, S. et al. Hexavalent chromium removal from aqueous solution using functionalized chitosan as a novel nano-adsorbent: modeling and optimization, kinetic, isotherm, and thermodynamic studies, and toxicity testing. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 20154–20168 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-2023-1

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