Mild Hydrothermal Synthesis of 11Å-TA from Alumina Extracted Coal Fly Ash and Its Application in Water Adsorption of Heavy Metal Ions (Cu(II) and Pb(II))

Non-biodegradable copper (Cu) and lead (Pb) contaminants in water are highly toxic and have series adverse effects. Therefore, it is very important to extract heavy metals from wastewater before it is discharged into the environment. Adsorption is a cost-effective alternative method for wastewater treatment. Choosing a low-cost adsorbent can help reduce the cost of adsorption. In this study, conversion of reside after extracting aluminum (REA) produced by sub-molten salt method transform high-alumina coal fly ash (CFA) into 11Å-tobermorite to adsorb Cu(II) and Pb(II) from aqueous solutions at room temperature. The synthesis of the adsorbent was confirmed using scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) method surface analysis. To study the adsorption characteristics, factors such as initial Cu(II) and Pb(II) concentration, pH, contact time, adsorption characteristics and temperature were investigated in batch mode. The maximum adsorption capacity of Cu(II) and Pb(II) was 177.1 mg·g−1 and 176.2 mg·g−1, respectively. The Langmuir adsorption model was employed to better describe the isothermal adsorption behavior and confirm the monolayer adsorption phenomenon. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model was used to highlight Cu(II) and Pb(II) adsorption kinetics. Thermodynamic analysis indicated the removal Cu(II) and Pb(II) by TA-adsorbent was a nonspontaneous and exothermic reaction. The obtained results are of great significance to the conversion of industrial waste to low-cost adsorbent for Cu(II) and Pb(II) removal from water.

Study on Adsorption Characteristics of Sulfonate Gemini Surfactant on Lignite Surface

In order to explore the adsorption characteristics of sulfonate gemini surfactants on the surface of lignite, the molecular dynamics simulation method was used, and A kind of sulfonic acid bis sodium salt (S2) and the sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) were selected. A binary model of surfactant/lignite adsorption system and a ternary model of water/surfactant/lignite system were constructed, and a series of properties such as adsorption configuration, interaction energy, order parameters, relative concentration distribution, number of hydrogen bonds, etc., were analyzed. The results showed that the adsorption strength of S2 on the surface of lignite was higher than that of SDS. The results indicated that the large-angle molecular chain in S2 tended to become smaller, the small-angle molecular chain tended to become larger, and the angle between the molecular chains and the Z axis tended to be concentrated, making the formed network structure denser during the adsorption process. The number of hydrogen bonds in the water-coal system was 42, and the number of hydrogen bonds in the system after S2 adsorption was 15, which was much lower than the 23 hydrogen bonds in the system after SDS adsorption, and S2 could better adsorb and wrap the oxygen-containing groups on the surface of the lignite. The comparative study of the adsorption characteristics of the two surfactants on the surface of lignite can help us better understand the influence of the surfactant structure on the adsorption strength. The research results have important theoretical and practical significance for developing new surfactants, and enriching and developing the basic theory of coal wettability.