In Situ Fabrication and Characterization of g-C 3 N 4 onto Cellulose Nanofibers and Selective Separation of Heavy Metal Ions.

Graphitic carbon nitride nanosheets were synthesized onto cellulose nanofiber surfaces utilizing an eco-friendly salt melt approach. The fabricated material CNF@C ₃ N ₄ selectively removes Ni(II) and Cu(II) from electroplating wastewater samples. The immobilization of g-C ₃ N ₄ on solid substrates eases handling of nanomaterial in a flow-through approach and mitigates sorbent loss during column operations. Characterization techniques such as scanning electron microscopy, tunneling electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron microscopy were employed to analyze the surface morphology and chemical bonding within the synthesized material. Selective Cu(II) and Ni(II) sorption predominantly arises from the soft-soft interaction between metal ions and associated nitrogen groups. An inner-sphere surface complexation mechanism effectively elucidated the interaction dynamics between the metal and CNF@C ₃ N ₄ . Experimental findings demonstrated satisfactory separation of Ni(II) and Cu(II) ions, with the extraction of 340.0 and 385.0 mg g ^-1 of material, respectively. Additionally, the devised technique was executed for the preconcentration and quantification of trace metals ions in water samples with a detection limit and limit of quantification of 0.06 and 0.20 μg L ^-1 , respectively.
Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest.
(© 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)