Poly(ethylene glycol) Diacrylate Hydrogel with Silver Nanoclusters for Water Pb(II) Ions Filtering
Luca Burratti,
Marco Zannotti,
Valentin Maranges,
Rita Giovannetti,
Leonardo Duranti,
Fabio De Matteis,
Roberto Francini,
Paolo Prosposito
Affiliations
Luca Burratti
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
Marco Zannotti
Department School of Science and Technology, Chemistry Division, ChIP Research Center, University of Camerino, Via Madonna delle Ceneri, 62032 Camerino, Italy
Valentin Maranges
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
Rita Giovannetti
Department School of Science and Technology, Chemistry Division, ChIP Research Center, University of Camerino, Via Madonna delle Ceneri, 62032 Camerino, Italy
Leonardo Duranti
Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
Fabio De Matteis
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
Roberto Francini
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
Paolo Prosposito
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy
Poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) hydrogels modified with luminescent silver nanoclusters (AgNCs) are synthesized by a photo-crosslinking process. The hybrid material thus obtained is employed to filter Pb(II) polluted water. Under the best conditions, the nanocomposite is able to remove up to 80–90% of lead contaminant, depending on the filter composition. The experimental results indicate that the adsorption process of Pb(II) onto the modified filter can be well modeled using the Freundlich isotherm, thus revealing that the chemisorption is the driving process of Pb(II) adsorption. In addition, the parameter n in the Freundlich model suggests that the adsorption process of Pb(II) ions in the modified hydrogel is favored. Based on the obtained remarkable contaminant uptake capacity and the overall low cost, this hybrid system appears to be a promising sorbent material for the removal of Pb(II) ions from aqueous media.
