A novel slag composite for the adsorption of heavy metals: Preparation, characterization and mechanisms

Environ Res. 2023 Jan 1;216(Pt 2):114442. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.114442. Epub 2022 Oct 3.

Abstract

The utilization of solid waste for resource recovery and production of value-added products is the theme of green chemistry. Currently, how to using solid wastes to prepare environmentally-functional materials with high performance and strength is one of the hot topics. In this research, electrolytic manganese residue (EMR) was thermally activated with calcite to prepare a silicon-based functionalized adsorbent (C-EMR) for the removal of cadmium (Cd2+, 467.14 mg/g) and lead (Pb2+, 972 mg/g). The thermodynamic results indicated that the removal process of Cd2+ and Pb2+ by C-EMR were endothermic and spontaneous. HNO3 can effectively strip the two adsorbed metals from C-EMR with the stripping efficiency of nearly 80% for Cd2+ and 99.92% for Pb2+, indicating that adsorption and ion exchange may be the main reason for the removal of the metals on C-EMR. Besides, surface precipitation was also responsible for removing some Pb2+ from the aquatic environment according to the X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS) analysis. Results indicate that -SiO3- has stronger affinity with Pb2+ and Cd2+ than other groups ((-MnO2), -OH) by theoretical calculation (VASP, GGA-PBE). This study shows that this novel adsorbent (C-EMR) can be adopted as an environmentally-friendly, inexpensive and efficient adsorbent for removal of Cd2+ and Pb2+ from aquatic solution. This technique not only provides potential adsorbent for the elimination of heavy metals but also proposes an alternative route for the treatment and utilization of waste solid.

Keywords: Cd(2+); Electrolytic manganese residue; Mechanism; Pb(2+); Removal.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adsorption
  • Cadmium / analysis
  • Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
  • Kinetics
  • Lead
  • Manganese Compounds / chemistry
  • Metals, Heavy* / chemistry
  • Oxides / chemistry
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis

Substances

  • Cadmium
  • Manganese Compounds
  • Lead
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical
  • Oxides
  • Metals, Heavy