Design, Characterization and Performance of the Modified Chitosan–Alumina Nanocomposites for the Adsorption of Hydroquinone and Arsenic (V) Ions

The aim of this study was to prepare the well-dispersed modified chitosan–alumina (CA) with size less than 50 nm by the facile synthesis method to evaluate the adsorption of hydroquinone and arsenic (V) ions in the aqueous solutions. Derived gamma-alumina from boehmite was coated and modified by chitosan and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and salicylic acid, respectively. The characterization of nanocomposites was studied by XRD, FTIR, FESEM, EDX TEM and BET analysis. The chitosan and SDS phases were detected in the structure of the adsorbent as confirmed by XRD achievements. A quadratic polynomial model was developed to describe the effect of the operating parameters including pH, temperature and initial concentration on the adsorption capacity of the prepared sample while the experimental data were designed by a response surface method (RSM). The maximum adsorption capacity for the best adsorbent named CSAS3 was measured to be 86.95 and 95.24 mg/g for HQ and As (V) ions by employing linear Langmuir equation, respectively. The kinetic study indicated that the experimental data were in an appropriate matching with the linearized pseudo-quadratic kinetic equation (R² = 0.999). The results showed the successful removal of hydroquinone and arsenic ions form the aqueous after 5 consecutive cycles.