A very low concentration of manganese (Mn) in water is a critical issue for municipal and industrial water supply systems. Mn removal technology is based on the use of manganese oxides (MnOx), especially manganese dioxide (MnO2) polymorphs, under different conditions of pH and ionic strength (water salinity). The statistical significance of the impact of polymorph type (akhtenskite ε-MnO2, birnessite δ-MnO2, cryptomelane α-MnO2 and pyrolusite β-MnO2), pH (2-9) and ionic strength (1-50 mmol/L) of solution on the adsorption level of Mn was investigated. The analysis of variance and the non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis H test were applied. Before and after Mn adsorption, the tested polymorphs were characterized using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope techniques and gas porosimetry analysis. Here we demonstrated the significant differences in adsorption level between MnO2 polymorphs' type and pH; however, the statistical analysis proves that the type of MnO2 has a four times stronger influence. There was no statistical significance for the ionic strength parameter. We showed that the high adsorption of Mn on the poorly crystalline polymorphs leads to the blockage of micropores in akhtenskite and, contrary, causes the development of the surface structure of birnessite. At the same time, no changes in the surfaces of cryptomelane and pyrolusite, the highly crystalline polymorphs, were found due to the very small loading by the adsorbate.
Keywords: MnO2 polymorphs; adsorption; akhtenskite; birnessite; cryptomelane; environmental engineering; groundwater treatment; pyrolusite.