Graft copolymerization of epichlorohydrin and ethylenediamine onto cellulose derived from agricultural by-products for adsorption of Pb(II) in aqueous solution

In order to develop a low-cost and high efficient absorbent, cellulose was extracted from peanut hulls, soybean shells and grapefruit peels using 17.5 % NaOH and then copolymerized with epichlorohydrin and ethylenediamine. Infrared spectra and N contents show that the cellulose was copolymerized successfully with the ethylenediamine. Factors affecting the adsorption behavior of Pb(II), such as pH, temperature, ratio of solid to liquid, competitive sorption of various metal ions, initial metal concentration and adsorption time, were then investigated. The adsorption equilibrium could be obtained within 120 min and the kinetic adsorption processes fitted well with the pseudo-second order kinetic model. The isotherm adsorption data fitted well with Langmuir adsorption model and the maximum absorption capacities of the modified peanut hulls, soybean shells and grapefruit peels were 47.8, 101 and 232 mg g⁻¹, respectively. The competitive adsorption of mixed metal ions demonstrated that Pb(II) was preferentially removed from solution by the modified peanuts shells, soybean shells and grapefruit peels, then Cu(II) and Cr(III). Desorption of Pb(II) from modified peanut hulls, soybean shells and grapefruit peels was effectively achieved in a 1 mol L⁻¹ HCl solution. Ethylenediamine-modified grapefruit peels exhibited higher absorption performance than the ethylenediamine-modified soybean shells and peanut hulls and can be used as potential low-cost and high efficient absorbents for the removal of lead ions from wastewater.