Porous fly ash-based geopolymer composite fiber as an adsorbent for removal of heavy metal ions from wastewater

This paper describes a simple and effective process for fabricating geopolymer-polymer composite fiber. The fiber is synthesized by mixing geopolymer powder with Polyethersulfone (PES) - N-Methyl-2 pyrrolidone (NMP) solution and the slurry was extruded then transformed into a fiber by phase inversion method. The fiber is constructed of PES and fly ash-based geopolymer (FAG) particles with porous structure. Analysis of the pore structure of fiber revealed that BET surface area is 168.30 m2/g. In addition, the adsorption capacity of heavy metal ions on geopolymer composite fiber follows the order of Pb2+ > Cu2+ > Cd2+ > Ni2+. This work provides a convenient, low-cost and environmental friendly adsorbent for removing heavy metal ions from waste water.