Magnetic chitosan/calcium alginate double-network hydrogel beads: Preparation, adsorption of anionic and cationic surfactants, and reuse in the removal of methylene blue

Robust and reusable magnetic chitosan/calcium alginate double-network hydrogel beads (CSMAB) with an environmentally benign biocomposite material synthesis approach were used adsorption of surfactant and removal of methylene blue dye sequentially for the first time. Double network hydrogel structure with sodium alginate and chitosan and acidification of the surface with HCl provided the reusability of the beads at the pollutant removal in water. The CSMAB beads were characterized for structural analysis by FESEM, EDX, BET, VSM, and FTIR techniques. They were used for the adsorption of cationic hexadecylpyridinium chloride (HDPCl) and anionic sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) surfactants and reused in the removal of cationic methylene blue dye without any pretreatment. The effect of pH, adsorbent dose, and temperature on surfactant removal efficiency was analyzed and pH was found the statistical significance. The adsorption capacity of CSMAB beads with a surface area of 0.65 m2 g-1 was calculated as 1.9 mg g-1 for HDPCl, and 1.2 mg g-1 for SDS, respectively. The SDS and HDPCl adsorption followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic and Freundlich isotherm model. The thermodynamic results showed that the surfactant adsorption process is an exothermic and spontaneous process. SDS-reacted CSMAB beads showed higher efficiency with 61 % in the removal of methylene blue dye.