TITLE:
UV/O3 Preirradiated Cotton Fabric-Containing Chitosan for Effective Removal of Heavy Metals
AUTHORS:
A. Hebeish, Kh. Elnagar, M. H. Helal, M. S. Ragab, M. F. Shaaban
KEYWORDS:
Chitosan, Cotton, Irradiation, Preirradiation, Heavy Metal Removal
JOURNAL NAME:
Materials Sciences and Applications,
Vol.5 No.10,
August
21,
2014
ABSTRACT:
The present work aims at
studying the effect of Ultra-Violet/Ozone (UV/O3) irradiation of
cotton fabrics on their interaction with chitosan/citric acid based formulation
and, the onset of this on the ability of treated fabrics to remove heavy metal
ions from their aqueous solutions. To achieve the goal, the cotton fabrics were
preirradiated for 90 minutes using UV/O3 as radiation source. The
irradiated and the unirrdadiated cotton fabrics were submitted to finishing
formulation consisting essentially of chitosan as a finishing agent and citric
acid as crosslinking agent in combination with sodium hypophosphite (SHP) as a
catalyst. Finishing formulation containing different concentrations of chitosan
(0 - 4) along with citric acid (8 g/l) and SHP (4 g/l) were used and the
interaction of chitosan with the cotton fabric was assessed through nitrogen
measurement. The preirradiated and chemically finished fabrics vis-à-vis the
unirrdadiated fabrics were examined for metal ion removal. Results conclude
that the preirradiated cotton fabrics exhibit higher nitrogen content than the
unirrdadiated fabrics. The same holds true for heavy metal removal, exemplified
by Zn2+ and Cd2+ ions from their aqueous solutions. That
is, preirradiated fabrics containing chitosan display higher percent heavy
metal removal than their unirrdadiated mates.