Synthesis of a Fe/Ca-based phosphate material and its application for adsorption of uranium ions from aqueous solution
- 26 October 2021
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Geological Society of London in Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis
- Vol. 21 (4)
- https://doi.org/10.1144/geochem2021-052
Abstract
Uranium (U) ion contamination in aquatic systems has received considerable attention worldwide. In this paper, an adsorption material was synthesized with a Fe/Ca-based phosphate (CFB-PM) by a sol-gel method. The effect of pH, reaction time and initial concentration of U ions on its capacity to remove U ions from aqueous solution was investigated via static batch experiments. Comparative studies of U ion removal by CFB-PM with four sorbents, namely: nano zero-valent iron (nZVI), hydroxyapatite (HAP), hydroxyapatite-loaded nano zero-valent iron (HAP@nZVI) and high basicity steel slag-loaded hydroxyapatite (HBSS@HAP), were performed. Results showed that U ion adsorption capacity of CFB-PM was better than that of all four. The adsorption capacity showed a decreasing order as: CFB-PM (643.34 mg g(-1))> HAP (549.86 mg g(-1)) > HBSS@HAP (321.82 mg g(-1)) > HAP@nZVI (153.62 mg g(-1))> nZVI (102.65 mg g(-1)). Scanning electron microscopy energy-dispersive spectrometry examination suggested that the adsorbed U ions were mainly in the form of spheres, sheets or petals on the surfaces of CFB-PM. X-ray diffraction revealed several U-bearing mineral phases (i.e. Ca(UO2)(2)(PO4)(2)center dot 3H(2)O, HPUO6 center dot 4H(2)O and (UO2)(3)PO4 center dot 4H(2)O). The U ion adsorption behaviours were further explored by Fourier transform IR spectroscopy. The U ion adsorption process of CFB-PM could be well described by a quasi-second-order adsorption kinetics model and the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model. The separation coefficient (R-L) was close to zero, indicating that U ion adsorption was dominated by single-layer chemisorption. The findings reported in this study have implications for applying the synthesized material for remediation of U ion-contaminated groundwater.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Natural Science Foundation of China (41562011 and 41902243)
- Natural Science Foundation of Jiangxi Province (20202BABL204069 and 20202BABL211018)
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