Study on adsorption of Cu(II) by water-insoluble starch phosphate carbamate

Crosslinked starch phosphate carbamates were prepared and used to adsorb Cu(II) ions from an aqueous solution. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to investigate the changes in the starch granule structure before and after adsorption. Batch adsorption experiments were carried out as a function of adsorption time, adsorbents dose, pH, substitute groups' content, initial Cu(II) ions concentrations, and temperature. The results reveal that 20 min of adsorption time is sufficient for reaching the adsorption equilibrium, the adsorption of Cu(II) ions on crosslinked starch phosphate carbamate is endothermic in nature, and the adsorption equilibrium data correlate well with the Langmuir isotherm model with the maximum adsorption capacity of 1.60 mmol/g. Moreover, the adsorbed Cu(II) ions can be desorbed by treating with HCl solution and the desorption percentage reached above 96% when desorbing with 1 N HCl solution for 1 h.