Efficient pollutants removal by amino-modified nanocellulose impregnated with iron oxide

A novel adsorbents NC-PEG, obtained by the modification of nanocellulose (NC) with PEG-6-arm amino polyethylene glycol (PEG-NH2) via maleic anhydride (MA) linker, was used for the removal of Cd2+ and Ni2+ from water. Subsequent precipitation of goethite (FO) on NC-PEG produced NC-PEG/FO adsorbent which was used for As(V) and As(III) removal. In a batch test, the influence of pH, contact time, initial ion concentration and temperature on adsorption efficiency were studied. The maximum adsorption capacities found for Cd2+ and Ni2+, obtained by the use of Langmuir model, were 37.9 and 32.4 mg g−1 at 25 °C, respectively. Also, high As(V) and As(III) removal capacity of 26.0 and 23.6 mg g-1 were obtained. Thermodynamic parameters indicate endothermic, feasible and spontaneous nature of adsorption process. Kinetic study, i.e. fitting by Weber-Morris model predicted intra-particle diffusion as a rate-controlling step. Multi-cycle reusability of both NC-PEG and NC-PEG/FO, significantly affects the affordability of techno-economic indicators for consideration of their possible application. [Ministry of Education, Science and Technological developments of the Republic of Serbia, Project No. 172013, and University of Defence, Republic of Serbia, project VA-TT/4/16-18]