Effect of various environmental factors on the adsorption of U(VI) onto biochar derived from rice straw

Herein, we used biochar pyrolyzed from rice straw to adsorb uranium (U) from aqueous solutions. The adsorption of U(VI) on biochar was strongly dependent on pH but independent on ionic strength. HA/FA enhanced the sorption at pH <6.8 while inhibited the sorption at pH >6.8. The sorption reached equilibrium within 3 h, which was not mediated by pH. The adsorption process was spontaneous and endothermic, and enhanced at higher temperature. However, the influence of temperature was negligible at low initial U(VI) concentrations. Therefore, biochar derived from rice straw may be a promising adsorbent for the removal of U(VI).

     

Preparation of carbon coated Fe3O4 nanoparticles for magnetic separation of uranium

Uranium(VI) was removed from aqueous solutions using carbon coated Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄@C). Batch experiments were conducted to study the effects of initial pH, shaking time and temperature on uranium sorption efficiency. It was found that the maximum adsorption capacity of the Fe₃O₄@C toward uranium(VI) was ∼120.20 mg g⁻¹ when the initial uranium(VI) concentration was 100 mg L⁻¹, displaying a high efficiency for the removal of uranium(VI) ions. Kinetics of the uranium(VI) removal is found to follow pseudo-second-order rate equation. In addition, the uranium(VI)-loaded Fe₃O₄@C nanoparticles can be recovered easily from aqueous solution by magnetic separation and regenerated by acid treatment. Present study suggested that magnetic Fe₃O₄@C composite particles can be used as an effective and recyclable adsorbent for the removal of uranium(VI) from aqueous solutions.     

Removal of uranium(VI) from acetate medium using Lewatit TP 260 resin

Removal of uranium(VI) ions from acetate medium in aqueous solution was investigated using Lewatit TP260 (weakly acidic, macroporous-type ion exchange resin with chelating aminomethylphosphonic functional groups) in batch system. The parameters that affect the uranium(VI) sorption, such as contact time, solution pH, initial uranium(VI) concentration, adsorbent dose and temperature have been investigated. Results have been analyzed by Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm; the former was more suitable to describe the sorption process. The moving boundary particle diffusion model only fits the initial metal adsorption on the resin. The rate constant for the uranium sorption by Lewatit TP260 was 0.441 min⁻¹ from the first order rate equation. The total sorption capacity was found to be 58.33 mg g⁻¹ under optimum experimental conditions. Thermodynamic parameters (ΔH = 61.74 kJ/mol; ΔS = 215.3 J/mol K; ΔG = −2.856 kJ/mol) showed the adsorption of an endothermic process and spontaneous nature, respectively.     

The preparation of PZS-OH/CNT composite and its adsorption of U(VI) in aqueous solutions

In this paper, polycyclotriphosphazene coated carbon nanotubes (PZS-OH/CNT) composite material has been synthesized via a facial method. The prepared PZS-OH/CNT was characterized by FTIR, BET, zeta potential and SEM. The material was investigated as an adsorbent for the adsorption towards U(VI) from aqueous solutions. Several parameters like solution pH, contact time and temperature were used to evaluate the sorption efficiency. The results indicated that the adsorption capacity of uranium on PZS-OH/CNT was improved from 41.48 mg g⁻¹ for CNT to 338.98 mg g⁻¹ due to the presence of functional groups on PZS-OH/CNT. The U(VI) sorption on PZS-OH/CNT was well fitted to the Langmuir adsorption isotherm and pseudo-second kinetics models. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔH, ΔS and ΔG) showed the U(VI) adsorption on CNT and PZS-OH/CNT was endothermic and spontaneous in nature.

     

Validation of a Monte Carlo HPGe detector model against irradiated foil gamma-ray spectroscopy measurements

In order to separate and pre-concentrate uranium from aqueous phase, a novel silica-based adsorbent was prepared by impregnating nalidixic acid (HNA) into a macroreticular silica/polymer composite support (SiO₂-P) with a mean diameter of 60 μm. Adsorption behavior of uranium from aqueous solution onto the adsorbent was studied. Experimental results indicated that HNA/SiO₂-P showed strong adsorption for uranium in a wide range of pH from 3.5 to 10.0, and the maximum adsorption capacity was 35.4 mg g⁻¹. In addition, HNA/SiO₂-P exhibited good selectivity for U(VI) and showed weak or bare adsorption affinity to foreign ions. Kinetic and isotherm of uranium adsorption were in accordance with the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Langmuir isotherm adsorption model, respectively. Moreover, U(VI) sorption was found to be an endothermic reaction and spontaneous under experimental state. The synthesized adsorbent showed an admirable stability at lower pH values in aqueous solution.

     

Adsorption of uranium from aqueous solution using HDTMA+-pillared bentonite: isotherm, kinetic and thermodynamic aspects

The ability of hexadecyltrimethylammonium cation pillared bentonite (HDTMA⁺-bentonite) has been explored for the removal and recovery of uranium from aqueous solutions. The adsorbent was characterized using small-angle X-ray diffraction, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The influences of different experimental parameters such as solution pH, initial uranium concentration, contact time, dosage and temperature on adsorption were investigated. The HDTMA⁺-bentonite exhibited the highest uranium sorption capacity at initial pH of 6.0 and at 80?min. Adsorption kinetics was better described by the pseudo-second-order model and adsorption process could be well defined by the Langmuir isotherm. The thermodynamic parameters, ??G° (308?K), ??H°, and ??S° were determined to be ?31.64, ?83.84?kJ/mol, and ?169.49?J/mol/K, respectively, which demonstrated the sorption process of HDTMA⁺-bentonite towards U(VI) was feasible, spontaneous, and exothermic in nature. The adsorption on HDTMA⁺-bentonite was more favor than Na-bentonite, in addition the saturated monolayer sorption capacity increased from 65.02 to 106.38?mg/g at 298?K after HDTMA⁺ pillaring. Complete removal (??100%) of U(VI) from 1.0?L simulated nuclear industry wastewater containing 10.0?mg U(VI) ions was possible with 1.5?g HDTMA⁺-bentonite.     

Uranium uptake from acidic solutions using synthetic titanium and magnesium based adsorbents

Uranium uptake from acidic solutions is comprised practically in this study into three main steps namely; adsorbent synthesis, uranium uptake procedure, and desorption step. In this respect, two uranium adsorbents were synthesized from mineral processing of ilmenite and talc. Titanium phosphate adsorbent (TP) was deposited from titanium sulfate solution obtained from ilmenite sands processing. On the other hand, magnesium silicate adsorbent (MS) is prepared by sodium metasilicate neutralization of the acidic magnesium bearing waste solution resulted from talc whitening process. Structurally and chemically the two adsorbents were investigated by XRD, IR and SEM-EDX analyses. The studied factors affecting the uranium uptake onto TP and MS adsorbents were uranium concentration (10–1000 ppm), acidic pH range (1–6), contact time, shaking time and solid to liquid ratio. The uranium analysis was determined spectrophotometrically using arsenazo(III) dye where SEM-EDX analysis confirmed the uranium uptake by adsorbents. The optimum conditions obtained were applied to uranium bearing, highly mineralized granite samples (5200 ppm U) and black shale (40 ppm U). The uranium uptake was more than 98% for the mineralized granite samples and more than 97% for shale. The loaded uranium was recycled by using 0.5 and 1M HNO₃ in case of TP and MS with percentage recovery of 96 and 98% respectively.     

Removal of uranium(VI) from aqueous solutions by carboxyl-rich hydrothermal carbon spheres through low-temperature heat treatment in air

Carboxyl-rich hydrothermal carbon spheres were prepared by simply heating pristine hydrothermal carbon spheres (HCSs) at lower temperature in air, and the textural properties were characterized using Boehm titrations, scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR) and elemental-analysis. The result of Boehm titrations indicated that the content of carboxyl groups on HCSs increased significantly from 0.53 to 3.81 mmol/g after heat-treatment at 300 °C, which was also confirmed by FT-IR and EA qualitatively. The ability of heat-treated HCSs has been explored for the removal and recovery of uranium from aqueous solutions, and the influences of different experimental parameters, such as heat-treatment temperature, contact time and ionic strength, on adsorption were investigated. The U(VI) sorption capacity of HCSs increased from 55.0 to 179.95 mg/g after heat-treatment at 300 °C for 5 h. Selective adsorption studies showed that the heat-treated HCSs could selectively remove U(VI), and the selectivity coefficients were improved after heat-treatment in the presence of co-existing ions, Na(I), Ni(II), Sr(II), Mn(II), Mg(II) and Zn(II). The adsorbent HCSs could be effectively regenerated by 0.05 mol/L HCl solution for the removal and recovery of U(VI). Complete removal (99.0 %) of U(VI) from 1.0 L industry wastewater containing 15.0 mg U(VI) ions was possible with 5.0 g heat-treated HCSs. In addition, a reaction mechanism for newly generating carboxyl groups on pristine HCSs surface during heat-treatment process and uranyl ion interaction with carboxyl-rich hydrothermal carbon spheres were also supposed.     

Adsorption and thermodynamic behavior of uranium(VI) on <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ulva sp</Emphasis>.-Na bentonite composite adsorbent

Summary The algae-clay composite adsorbent was tested for its ability to recover U(VI) from diluted aqueous solutions. Macro marine algae (Ulva sp.) and clay (Na bentonite) were used to prepare composite adsorbent. The ability of the composite adsorbent to adsorp uranium(VI) from aqueous solution has been studied at different optimized conditions of pH, concentration of U(VI), temperature, contact time. Parameters of desorption were also investigated to recover the adsorbed uranium. The adsorption patterns of uranium on the composite adsorbent followed the Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich isotherms. The thermodynamic parameters such as the enthalpy ΔH, entropy ΔS and Gibbs free energy ΔG were calculated from the slope and intercept of lnK_d vs. 1/T plots. The results suggested that the Ulva sp.-Na bentonite composite adsorbent is suitable as sorbent material for recovery and biosorption/adsorption of uranium ions from aqueous solutions.     

Efficient uranium(VI) biosorption on grapefruit peel: kinetic study and thermodynamic parameters

The uranium(VI) biosorption by grapefruit peel was studied from aqueous solutions. Batch experiments was conducted to evaluate the effect of contact time, initial uranium(VI) concentration, initial pH, adsorbent dose, salt concentration and temperature. The equilibrium process was well described by the Langmuir, Redlich–Peterson and Koble–Corrigan isotherm models, with maximum sorption capacity of 140.79 mg g⁻¹ at 298 K. The pseudo second order model and Elovish model adequately describe the kinetic data in comparison to the pseudo first order model and the process involving rate-controlling step is much complex involving both boundary layer and intra-particle diffusion processes. The effective diffusion parameter D _i and D _f values were estimated at different initial concentration and the average values were determined to be 1.167 × 10⁻⁷ and 4.078 × 10⁻⁸ cm² s⁻¹. Thermodynamic parameters showed that the biosorption of uranium(VI) onto grapefruit peel biomass was feasible, spontaneous and endothermic under studied conditions. The physical and chemical properties of the adsorbent were determined by SEM, TG-DSC, XRD and elemental analysis and the nature of biomass–uranium (VI) interactions was evaluated by FTIR analysis, which showed the participation of COOH, OH and NH₂ groups in the biosorption process. Adsorbents could be regenerated using 0.05 mol L⁻¹ HCl solution at least three cycles, with up to 80% recovery. Thus, the biomass used in this work proved to be effective materials for the treatment of uranium (VI) bearing aqueous solutions.     

Sorption study of uranium on carbon spheres hydrothermal synthesized with glucose from aqueous solution

The ability of oxygen-rich carbon spheres (CSs) produced by hydrothermal carbonization with the glucose has been explored for the removal and recovery of uranium from aqueous solutions. The micro-morphology and structure of CSs were characterized by FT-IR and SEM. The influences of different experimental parameters such as solution pH, initial concentration, contact time, ionic strength and temperature on adsorption were investigated. The CSs showed the highest uranium sorption capacity at initial pH of 6.0 and contact time of 25 min. Adsorption kinetics was better described by the pseudo-second-order model and adsorption process could be well defined by the Langmuir isotherm. The thermodynamic parameters, △G°(298 K), △H° and △S° were determined to be ?16.88, 12.09 kJ mol^?1 and 197.87 J mol^?1 K^?1, respectively, which demonstrated the sorption process of CSs towards U(VI) was feasible, spontaneous and endothermic in nature. The adsorbed CSs could be effectively regenerated by 0.05 mol/L HCl solution for the removal and recovery of U(VI). Complete removal (99.9 %) of U(VI) from 1.0 L industry wastewater containing 15.0 mg U(VI) ions was possible with 3.0 g CSs.     

A high efficient sorption of U(VI) from aqueous solution using amino-functionalized SBA-15

Uranium is one of the most hazardous heavy metal due to its long half-life radioactivity, high toxicity and mobility as aqueous uranyl ion (UO₂ ²⁺) under ordinary environmental conditions. Herein, amino functionalized SBA-15 (APSS) was developed as a rapid and efficient sorbent for removal of U(VI) from the environment. The APSS sample was synthesized by grafting method and was characterized by SEM, NMR, SAXS, and N₂ sorption/desorption isothermal experiments. The sorption of U(VI) by APSS was investigated under different conditions of pH, contact time, initial U(VI) concentration, ionic strength and solid–liquid ratio. The results show that the sorption of U(VI) by APSS is strongly dependent on pH but independent of ionic strength and solid–liquid ratios (m/V). The sorption is ultrafast with an equilibrium time of less than 30 min, and the sorption capacity is as large as 409 mg/g at pH 5.3 ± 0.1. Besides, the U(VI) sorption by APSS from extremely diluted solution and the desorption of U(VI) from APSS were also studied. It is found that 100 mg of APSS can almost completely remove the U(VI) ions from 4 L aqueous solution with the U(VI) concentration as low as 4.2 ppb and the sorbed U(VI) can be completely desorbed by 0.1 mol/L nitric acid. The results strongly reveal the high performance of the APSS material in the removal and preconcentration of U(VI) from the aqueous solution.     

Adsorption characteristics of uranyl ions by manganese oxide coated sand in batch mode

In this paper, the sorption properties of manganese oxide coated sand (MOCS) towards uranium(VI) from aqueous solutions were studied in a batch adsorption system. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and infrared (IR) analyses were used to characterize MOCS. Parameters affecting the adsorption of uranium(VI), such as the contact time, salt concentration, competitive ions, temperature and initial uranium(VI) concentration, were investigated. The equilibrium adsorption data were analyzed by Langmuir, Freundlich and Redlich–Peterson models using nonlinear regressive analysis. The results indicated that the Langmuir and Redlich–Peterson models provided the best correlation of experimental data. The kinetic experimental data were analyzed using three kinetic equations including pseudo-first order equation, pseudo-second order equation and intraparticle diffusion model to examine the mechanism of adsorption and potential rate-controlling step. The process mechanism was found to be complex, consisting of both surface adsorption and pore diffusion. The effective diffusion parameter D _i values estimated in the order of 10⁻⁷ cm² s⁻¹ indicated that the intraparticle diffusion was not the rate-controlling step. Thermodynamic study showed that the adsorption was a spontaneous, endothermic process. Adsorbed U(VI) ions were desorbed effectively (about 94.7%) by 0.1 mol L⁻¹ HNO₃. The results indicated that MOCS can be used as an effective adsorbent for the treatment of industrial wastewaters contaminated with U(VI) ions.     

Biosorption behaviors of uranium (VI) from aqueous solution by sunflower straw and insights of binding mechanism

Uranium (VI)-containing water has been recognized as a potential longer-term radiological health hazard. In this work, the sorptive potential of sunflower straw for U (VI) from aqueous solution was investigated in detail, including the effect of initial solution pH, adsorbent dosage, temperature, contact time and initial U (VI) concentration. A dose of 2.0 g L^?1 of sunflower straw in an initial U (VI) concentration of 20 mg L^?1 with an initial pH of 5.0 and a contact time of 10 h resulted in the maximum U (VI) uptake (about 6.96 mg g^?1) at 298 K. The isotherm adsorption data was modeled best by the nonlinear Langmuir–Freundlich equation. The equilibrium sorption capacity of sunflower straw was observed to be approximately seven times higher than that of coconut-shell activated carbon as 251.52 and 32.37 mg g^?1 under optimal conditions, respectively. The positive enthalpy and negative free energy suggested the endothermic and spontaneous nature of sorption, respectively. The kinetic data conformed successfully to the pseudo-second-order equation. Furthermore, energy dispersive X-ray, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrated that U (VI) adsorption onto sunflower straw was predominantly controlled by ion exchange as well as complexation mechanism. The study revealed that sunflower straw could be exploited for uranium remediation of aqueous streams as a promising adsorbent.     

Removal of uranium from aqueous solution by using activated palm kernel shell carbon: adsorption equilibrium and kinetics

Activated palm kernel shell carbon (APKSC) was used to remove U(VI) from aqueous solutions in a batch system. The adsorption kinetics, isotherms, and effects of various parameters, such as temperature, contact time, solution pH, adsorbent dosage, and initial U(VI) concentration on the U(VI) adsorption process were studied. Equilibrium was reached after 120 min in the range of studied U(VI) concentrations and temperatures. U(VI) uptake was insignificantly affected by temperature, but was highly pH dependent, and the optimum pH for removal was 5.5. U(VI) removal efficiency increased with the increasing adsorbent dosage. U(VI) sorption capacity increased with increasing initial U(VI) concentration; any further increases in initial U(VI) concentration above a certain point caused insignificant changes in U(VI) sorption capacity. Isotherm data could be described by the Langmuir isotherm model with a maximum U(VI) adsorption capacity of 51.81 mg/g. Kinetic data were fitted to pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order equations, which suggested that the U(VI) adsorption onto APKSC was better reproduced by the pseudo-second-order model rather than pseudo-first-order model. Our results indicated that APKSC might be used as a cheap adsorbent in the treatment of uranium-containing wastewater.     

Sorption of uranium(VI) on Na-attapulgite as a function of contact time,solid content,pH, ionic strength,temperature and humic acid

Sorption of U(VI) from aqueous solution to Na-attapulgite was investigated at different experimental chemistry conditions by using batch technique. The attapulgite sample was characterized by FTIR and XRD. Sorption of U(VI) on attapulgite was strongly dependent on pH and ionic strength. The sorption of U(VI) on attapulgite increased quickly with rising pH at pH < 6, and decreased with increasing pH at pH > 7. The presence of humic acid (HA) enhanced the sorption of U(VI) on attapulgite obviously at low pH because of the strong complexation of surface adsorbed HA with U(VI) on attapulgite surface. Sorption of U(VI) on attapulgite was mainly dominated by ion exchange and/or outer-sphere surface complexation at low pH values, whereas the sorption was attributed to the inner-sphere surface complexation or precipitation at high pH values. The sorption increased with increasing temperature and the thermodynamic parameters calculated from the temperature dependent sorption isotherms suggested that the sorption of U(VI) on attapulgite was a spontaneous and endothermic process. The results indicate that attapulgite is a very suitable material for the preconcentration of U(VI) ions from large volumes of aqueous solutions.     

A new sorbent for uranium extraction: ethylenediamino tris(methylenephosphonic) acid grafted on polystyrene resin

A new chelating polymeric sorbent has been developed using polystyrene resin grafted with ethylenediamino tris(methylenephosphonic) acid. After characterisation by FTIR and elementary analysis, the new grafted resin has been investigated in liquid–solid extraction of uranium(VI). The influence of analytical parameters including pH, amount of resin, metal ion concentration, sample volume and ionic strength were investigated on the recovery of U(VI). Adsorption kinetic and isotherm studies were also carried out to understand the nature of the sorption of uranium(VI) by the resin. The total sorption capacity was found to be 41.76 mg/g under optimum conditions. The total desorption of the sorbed uranium ions was successfully performed with 0.1 M ammonium carbonate. Further, the effect of temperature was realized and the thermodynamic parameters were calculated.     

Thermodynamic parameters and sorption of U(VI) on ACSD

This paper discusses the sorption properties for U(VI) by alginate coated CaSO₄·2H₂O sepiolite and calcined diatomite earth (Kieselguhr) (ACSD). The removal of U(VI) from aqueous solution by sorption onto ACSF in a single component system with various contact times, pH, temperatures, and initial concentrations of U(VI) was investigated. The sorption patterns of uranium on the composite adsorbent followed the Langmuir, Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkhevic (D-R) isotherms. The Freundlich, Langmuir, and D-R models have been applied and the data correlated well with Freundlich model and that the sorption was physical in nature (sorption energy, E _a = 17.05 kJ/mol). The thermodynamic parameters such as variation of enthalpy ΔH, variation of entropy ΔS and variation of Gibbs free energy ΔG were calculated from the slope and intercept of lnK ₀ vs. 1/T plots. Thermodynamic parameters (ΔH _ads = 31.83 kJ/mol, ΔS _ads = 167 J/mol·K, ΔG ^o _ads (293.15 K) = −17.94 kJ/mol) showed the endothermic heat of sorption and the feasibility of the process. The thermodynamics of U(VI) ion/ACSD system indicates the spontaneous and endothermic nature of the process. It was noted that an increase in temperature resulted in a higher uranium loading per unit weight of the adsorbent.     

Sorption characteristics of uranium onto composite ion exchangers

The composite ion exchangers were tested for their ability to remove UO₂ ²⁺ from aqueous solutions. Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) composites having natural zeolite, clinoptilolite, and synthetic zeolite, zeolite X, were used as an adsorbents. The influences of pH, U(VI) concentration, temperature and contact time on the sorption behavior of U(VI) were investigated in order to gain a macroscopic understanding of the sorption mechanism. The optimum adsorption conditions were determined for two composites. The sorption behaviors of uranium on both composites from aqueous systems have been studied by batch technique. Parameters on desorption were also investigated to recover the adsorbed uranium.     

Determination of uranium(VI) in natural waters after preconcentration on adsorbent containing m-aminophenol fragments

Sorption and complexing properties of a modified adsorbent based on a maleic anhydride-styrene copolymer towards uranium(VI) are studied and the main quantitative characteristics of the metal ion sorption are determined. An adsorbent containing m-aminophenol fragments is proposed for the selective sorption of uranium(VI) from solutions. The optimal sorption conditions have been found. The recovery of uranium(VI) under the optimal conditions exceeds 95%. A procedure of the sorption photometric determination of uranium(VI) in sea water is developed.