Journal of Membrane Science & Technology

Abstract

Heavy Metal Separation from Industrial Effluent and Synthetic Mixtures using Newly Synthesized Composite Material

Mir Shabeer Ahmad, Ayaz Mahmood Dar, Shafia Mir, Shahnawaz Ahmad Mir and Noor Mohd Bhat

A stable composite cation exchange adsorbent for the treatment of heavy metal ions has been synthesized by sol-gel method and characterized by FTIR, XRD, SEM, TGA and TEM analysis. Ion-exchange capacity, pH titration, elution behavior and distribution studies have been also carried out to determine the primary ion-exchange characteristics of the composite. The material shows exchange capacity of 1.49 meq g-1 (for Na+). The composite material exhibits improved ion-exchange capacity, chemical and thermal stability. It can be used up to 300°C with 87.5% retention of initial ion-exchange capacity. The pH titration data reveals bifunctional behaviour of composite. On the basis of distribution coefficient (Kd), the material has been selective for Cd(II), Ba(II), Hg(II) and Pb(II) ions. A number of important and analytically difficult quantitative separations of metal ions have been achieved using columns packed with this exchanger. The composite cation exchanger has been applied for the treatment of sewage water and synthetic mixture successfully.