Removal of Mercury Ions by Polyaniline/Rice Husk Nanocomposite from Aqueous Solutions

Abstract

Abstract. Rice husk is a by-product of the agricultural industry which could be applied for green-composite which obtained from massiveness waste-agricultural materials as a replacement to reducing expenses methods of removing heavy metal ions from wastewater. The adsorption of mercury (Hg) from solutions by a composite of polyaniline/rice husk (PAN/ RH) with hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) from the aqueous solutions was considered as a main purpose. The data revealed that the solution pH values of the aqueous solution indicated that Hg(II) adsorption can efficiently remove Hg(II) in pH 6 and equilibrium time of 30 min (50 ppm). The adsorption isotherms were best fitted to a Freundlich model compared to Langmuir, which indicates the adsorption of Hg (II) onto PAN/RH with R2 = 0.989. The agro-synthesized composite were analyzed and characterized by FTIR. The morphology of nanocomposite was observed by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), which indicated that the polyaniline/rice husk were uniformly dispersed and highly stabilized in the presence of hydroxypropyl cellulose as a surfactant.