Synthesis of a new nanoadsorbent by graphene oxide modification using chelating ligands for cadmium removal from aqueous media

A poly allyl acetoacetate-grafted graphene oxide (GO-GAA) was successfully synthesized through Hummers' method followed by divinyl sulfone modification and allyl acetoacetate polymerizaton. This novel functionalized graphene oxide was characterized by FT-IR, XRD, FE-SEM, TEM analyses. Thereafter, the adsorption property of GO-GAA for Cd2+ ion removal from aqueous media was investigated. The effect of several factors such as pH and temperature on the Cd2+ adsorption was also studied. The maximum Cd2+ adsorption by GO-GAA occurs at 20°C, at pH=7. The synthesized nanoadsorbent also showed a good reusability, even after 10 cycles of adsorption-desorption using HNO3 as regenerating agent. Furthermore, applicability of synthesized nanoadsorbent for Cd2+ removal from industrial wastewater and well water samples inoculated with cadmium was investigated and over 82% efficiency was observed.