Equilibrium, kinetics and mechanism of Au3 +, Pd2 + and Ag+ ions adsorption from aqueous solutions by graphene oxide functionalized persimmon tannin

•PT-GO was synthesized by graphene oxide functionalized persimmon tannins.•PT-GO exhibited good performance towards Au3 +, Pd2 + and Ag+ ions.•The process was investigated systematically by isotherms and kinetic analysis.

In this study, a novel bio-adsorbent (PT-GO) was prepared by functionalization persimmon tannin (PT) with graphene oxide (GO) and the effective adsorption behaviors of Au3 +, Pd2 + and Ag+ ions from aqueous solution was investigated. The PT-GO was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR), scanning electronic microscope (SEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Zeta potential. Many influence factors such as pH value, bio-adsorbent dosage, initial concentration of metal ions and contact time were optimized. The maximum adsorption capacity for Au3 +, Pd2 + and Ag+ was 1325.09 mg/g, 797.66 mg/g and 421.01 mg/g, respectively. The equilibrium isotherm for the adsorption of Au3 + and Ag+ on PT-GO were found to obey the Langmuir model, while the Freundlich model fitted better for Pd2 +. The adsorption process of Au3 +, Pd2 + presented relatively fast adsorption kinetics with pseudo-second-order equation as the best fitting model, while the pseudo-first-order kinetic model was suitable for describing the adsorption of Ag+. Combination of ion exchange, electrostatic interaction and physical adsorption was the mechanism for adsorption of Au3 +, Pd2 + and Ag+ onto PT-GO bio-adsorbent. Therefore, the PT-GO bio-adsorbent would be an ideal adsorbent for removal of precious metal ions and broaden the potential applications of persimmon tannin in environmental research.

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