Versatile and durable polyvinyl alcohol/alginate/gelatin/quaternary ammonium chitosan/Fe3O4 particles hybrid hydrogel beads: adsorption capabilities for cleaning pollutants.

ABSTRACT

A novel hybrid hydrogel bead (HHBFe) composed of polyvinyl alcohol/sodium alginate/gelatin/quaternary ammonium chitosan (PVA/GA/SA/QCS) and Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles was developed through green cross-linking of Ca2+ and tannic acid (TA) combined freeze-thaw method. HHBFe exhibited a good spherical shape, porosity, magnetic properties, and excellent mechanical properties and durability. The adsorption capacity of HHB and HHBFe towards methyl orange (MO), tetracycline (Tc), and Cr (VI) was systematically studied and compared. Results revealed similar adsorption capacities for MO and Cr (VI) between HHB and HHBFe, while the presence of Fe3O4 significantly enhanced Tc adsorption, indicating the versatile adsorption functions of HHBFe. Adsorption kinetic followed the pseudo-second-order model, with external diffusion and intra-particle diffusion controlling process. The adsorption data were consistent with the Langmuir isothermal adsorption model, indicating predominantly monolayer adsorption of pollutants by beads. Notably, the beads exhibited easily regenerated, maintaining 60 % of initial adsorption capacity after 5 cycles, particularly for Tc and Cr (VI). The good adsorption performance of HHBFe can be attributed to the strong interaction between their multi-functional groups including phenolic hydroxyl groups, carboxyl groups, amino groups, etc., and pollutant molecules. The multifunctional HHBFe beads prepared in this study and the results obtained with three completely different types of pollutants provide reliability support for their use in different wastewater treatment fields and even in the field of drug carriers.