Cellulose, cilt.31, sa.8, ss.5133-5149, 2024 (SCI-Expanded)
In the present study, cellulose beads were prepared using the phase inversion method and then activated with epichlorohydrin. The epoxy groups of the activated beads were modified with Nα,Nα-bis(carboxymethyl)-L-lysine hydrate (CML), and tetraethylenepentamine (TEPA) ligands. These modified beads, coded as cellulose-COOH and cellulose-NH2, respectively, were used to remove of uranium (VI) ions from aqueous medium. The prepared adsorbents were characterized using FTIR, SEM, zeta-potential, and analytical methods; the performance of both the modified beads for the removal of uranium (VI) ions was optimized using different operational parameters in a batch system. The amount of adsorbed uranium ions on cellulose-COOH and cellulose-NH2 beads was 462.9 ± 13.7 and 127.4 ± 5.1 mg/g, respectively. The results are acceptable regarding the equilibrium kinetics for the adsorption of uranium (VI) ions, which followed the second-order kinetic model. The prepared activated cellulose beads could be utilized in many technological applications by making appropriate modifications in the reactive epoxy groups of cellulose.