Rapid and selective separation of heavy metal ions from aquatic medium using a bidentate functionalized hybrid material
(2025) Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects — Vol. 704, n° 704, p. 135462 (2025)
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- Low-cost mesoporous silica material, functionalized with a bidentate pyrazolyl pyridine metal acceptor and presenting a high specific surface area of 417 m²/g, was synthesized (mSi-L3) using a two-step procedure and characterized in detail to confirm the successful covalent binding onto silica surface. Notably, mSi-L3 exhibited strong selectivity for PbII among CdII and CuII ions, and displayed rapid metal ion removal, typically less than 10 min, from water samples. The influence of various environmental parameters on the adsorption process, such as pH, contact time and temperature, was systematically investigated. Optimal adsorption of metal ions was achieved at pH 6, as lower pH values reduced the availability of active sites due to competitive hydronium ion presence. Kinetic studies indicated that the adsorption process adhered to the pseudo-second-order model, suggesting a chemisorption mechanism. Temperature significantly influenced the adsorption capacity, with increased temperatures enhancing metal ion removal and confirming the endothermic nature of the process. The isotherm study suggests that the Langmuir model accurately describes the adsorption process, confirming that CuII, CdII and PbII ions are adsorbed as a monolayer on the homogeneous surface of m-SiL3 material, implying that the material has uniform adsorption sites where each metal ion occupies a distinct site without interaction with neighbouring ions. These findings underscore the importance of optimizing environmental conditions to maximize the efficiency of mSi-L3 for heavy metal removal. Also, mSi-L3 demonstrated excellent stability, with only a slight (∼1−3 %) decrease in functional groups on its surface after multiple regeneration cycles. Extensive analytical studies conducted with real water samples provided further evidence of the stability and effectiveness of mSi-L3 for the separation of metal trace elements of lead, copper and cadmium.
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Oulmidi, A., Radi, S., Tighadouini, S., Fusaro, L., Aprile, C., Rotaru, A., & Garcia, Y. (2025). Rapid and selective separation of heavy metal ions from aquatic medium using a bidentate functionalized hybrid material. Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 704(704), 135462. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2024.135462 (Original work published 2025)