Sorption of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions using zeolite modified by polyethylene glycol

The present paper reports data on the adsorption of Pb ²⁺ and Cd ²⁺ ions on modified zeolite from the Shankanai deposit. A non-toxic polymer, polyethylene glycol, is used as a modifier. The sorption process is carried out at 295K and pH of 7. The prepared material (sorbent) is characterized by the Brunner-Emmett-Teller method (BET), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while the concentration of the heavy metal ions prior to and after the adsorption is measured by atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). The static ion-exchange capacities (SEC) of the modified sorbent for removal of Pb(II) and Cd(II) are found equal to 1.44 mg/g and 0.53 mg/g, respectively. The uptake behavior of the metal ions in respect to the modified zeolite is studied depending on the contact time. It is found that the percentage of the heavy metal ions removal increases with increase of the contact time in a neutral medium with a high concentration of heavy metals (the removal efficiency amounts to 90.02 % for Pb ²⁺ and 46.31 % for Cd ²⁺ ).