Characterization of a chitosan biopolymer and arsenate removal for drinking water treatment

Chitosan biopolymer with a deacetylation degree of 85%, was assessed for its capability to adsorb As(V) from drinking water by batch experiments. To characterize the chitosan biopolymer, chitosan was analyzed by FTIR and SEM. The results showed that chitosan is an effective and promising sorbent for As(V) from drinking water. From the batch tests, results showed a maximum adsorption of 355 μg/L of As(V) with 1.18 μg g-1 adsorption capacity at pH 6. The kinetic data, obtained at pH 6 could be fitted with pseudo-second order equation (adsorption capacity: 0.923 μg g-1) and the process was suitably described by a Freundlich (R2 = 0.9933) model than by a Langmuir model (R2 = 0.9741). The results above indicated that chitosan is a very favorable sorbent for As(V) removal from aqueous solution. © 2014 Taylor & Francis Group.