Thiocarbamoyl chitosan as a novel sorbent with high sorption capacity and selectivity for the ions of gold(III), platinum(IV), and palladium(II)

Thiocarbamoyl chitosan (TCC) was synthesized by grafting thiourea on chitosan backbone in eutectic composition of ammonium thiocyanate—thiourea. Insoluble products with the amno group functionalization degree of 0.3–1.1 can be prepared by varying the conditions of polymer-analogous (synthesis in a gel) transformation. Structure of the synthesized chitosan derivatives was characterized by elemental analysis, diffuse reflectance infrared spectroscopy, and the solid state ¹³C NMR. Study of sorption properties of TCC shows high sorption capacity and selectivity for the ions of gold(III), platinum(IV), and palladium(II) as evidenced by results obtained at pH 2 in the presence of 100–1000-fold excess of iron(III), copper(II), zinc(II), and nickel(II). Sorption capacity of TCC for all ions increases with the increase in the degree of substitution and changes in the series: Au^III > Pd^II > Pt^IV.