Open Access

ARTICLE

Removal of Iron from Leached Geological Samples Using Polypropylene Waste Amidoxime-Based Radiation Grafted Adsorbent

Hafiz Zain Ul Aabidin¹, Muhammad Inam Ul Hassan², Tariq Yasin², Muhammad Zubair Rahim¹, Asif Raza^1,*

1 Department of Chemical Engineering, Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (PIEAS), Islamabad, Pakistan
2 Department of Chemistry, Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (PIEAS), Islamabad, Pakistan

* Corresponding Author: Asif Raza. Email:

Journal of Polymer Materials 2025, 42(1), 141-150. https://doi.org/10.32604/jpm.2024.057423

Received 17 August 2024; Accepted 21 November 2024; Issue published 27 March 2025

Abstract

Geological samples often contain significant amounts of iron, which, although not typically the target element, can substantially interfere with the analysis of other elements of interest. To mitigate these interferences, amidoxime-based radiation grafted adsorbents have been identified as effective for iron removal. In this study, an amidoxime-functionalized, radiation-grafted adsorbent synthesized from polypropylene waste (PPw-g-AO-10) was employed to remove iron from leached geological samples. The adsorption process was systematically optimized by investigating the effects of pH, contact time, adsorbent dosage, and initial ferric ion concentration. Under optimal conditions—pH 1.4, a contact time of 90 min, and an initial ferric ion concentration of 4500 mg/L—the adsorbent exhibited a maximum iron adsorption capacity of 269.02 mg/g. After optimizing the critical adsorption parameters, the adsorbent was applied to the leached geological samples, achieving a 91% removal of the iron content. The adsorbent was regenerated through two consecutive cycles using 0.2 N HNO₃, achieving a regeneration efficiency of 65%. These findings confirm the efficacy of the synthesized PPw-g-AO-10 as a cost-effective and eco-friendly adsorbent for successfully removing iron from leached geological matrices while maintaining a reasonable degree of reusability.

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