Green and efficient preparation of carboxymethyl cellulose by the mechanical force assist method and its copper ion adsorption

Abstract

This study reports the efficient preparation of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) that can be used for the adsorption of heavy metals in water by a mechanical force-assisted method with the advantage of green sustainability by replacing solvents and catalysts with mechanical force throughout the preparation process. The mechanical force mechanism of the reaction conditions on the chemical structure and properties of CMC was investigated by FT-IR, ¹H NMR, chemical titration, TGA and SEM. The experimental results of copper ion adsorption by CMC show that the adsorption process obeyed the quasi-secondary adsorption kinetic model and conformed to the multimolecular layer adsorption mechanism. When the initial concentration of copper ions was 850 mg/L, the adsorption capacity of CMC could reach 397.1 mg/g and the copper ions removal rate was 93.4 %. This work develops a green and environmentally friendly preparation method for biomass adsorbents which is expected to provide new ideas for solving heavy metal pollution.