Removal of heavy metals from aqueous solution using chitosan-combined magnetic biochars

The use of chitosan combined with magnetic Loofah biochar (CMLB) was investigated for the removal of Cr(VI) and Cu(II) from aqueous solution. The modified biochar had higher Cr(VI) and Cu(II) adsorption capacity than that of pristine biochar. 40%-CMLB showed high Cr(VI) and Cu(II) adsorption capacity of 30.14 mg/g, and 54.68 mg/g, respectively. Adsorption reached equilibrium within 18 h. The study found that the experimental data showed the best fit for the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Freundlich model. Additionally, after three reuse cycles, Cr(VI) and Cu(II) adsorption capacity by CMLB were 23.34 mg/g and 42.6 mg/g, respectively. XPS results indicated that ion exchange and surface complexation were the primary mechanisms for Cr(VI) and Cu(II) adsorption.