A novel
mesoporous SiO2 material (M-SiO2)
with MCM-41 structure was readily fabricated from the inexpensive
coal gangue via a hydrothermal reaction in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium
bromide (CTAB) for CO2 capture. On the basis of orthogonal
experimental results, the optimum conditions for the preparation of
M-SiO2 were identified as follows: the SiO3
2– leaching of 21 g/L from coal gangue, the CTAB concentration
of 0.25 mol/L, the HCl concentration of 2.5 mol/L, the hydrothermal
temperature of 393.15 K, and the hydrothermal time of 20 h. Under
the optimum condition, the M-SiO2 exhibited an adsorption
capability of 9.61 mg/g to 8% CO2 at 298.15 K. To further
improve the CO2 adsorption performance, the M-SiO2 was chemically modified using ethylenediamine (EDA), and the optimum
conditions for the modification of M-SiO2 were identified
as follows: the impregnation time of 10 h, the drying temperature
of 343.15 K, and the ratio of EDA/M-SiO2 = 2:1. Under the
optimum conditions, the adsorption capability of EDA-modified M-SiO2 (EDA-M-SiO2) was increased by 83.5 mg/g. The obtained
M-SiO2 and EDA-M-SiO2 were systemically characterized
by N2 adsorption–desorption isotherms, thermogravimetric
analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron
microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction
measurements techniques. The analytical results indicated that the
M-SiO2 was mainly composed of O and Si in the form of SiO2 with a specific surface area of 156 m2/g, and
part of M-SiO2 exhibited a structure similar to MCM-41.
Moreover, the mechanisms of EDA modification and CO2 adsorption
were investigated and discussed in detail.