Heavy Metal Adsorption with PVA/Lignin Blend Fibers

The removal of heavy metals from various kinds of waste water is important not only for environmental protection, but also for reduction of potential negative effects on human health. In this study, fibers that exhibit significant heavy metal adsorption were prepared by blending lignin with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). These PVA/lignin fibers could be prepared by wet spinning using dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as the solvent and ethanol as the coagulant. Stable spinning was achieved at a lignin content of 40%. However, lignin reduced the mechanical properties of PVA fibers due to its low molecular weight. Cr(VI) was used as a model heavy metal ion, and the presence of lignin improved the Cr(VI) adsorption almost 1.6 times. The results show the possibility of PVA/lignin blend fiber for Cr(VI) adsorption.