Removal of trivalent chromium from aqueous solutions by amphiphilic core-shell poly(methyl acrylate)/silk sericin nanospheres

摘要

Well-defined,core-shell poly(methyl acrylate/silk sericin) (PMA-SS) nanospheres,ranging from 100 to 150 nm in diameter,were prepared via a direct graft copolymerisation of methyl acrylate (MA) with silk sericin (SS).The polymerisation was induced by a small amount of tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP) in water at temp.353 K.The PMA-SS core-shell nanospheres were used as adsorbent in a series of batch adsorption experiments for the removal of trivalent chromium from aqueous solutions.The experimental results showed that PMA-SS nanospheres were an effective adsorbent for trivalent chromium from aqueous solution,and the maximum amount of adsorption reached 4.876 mg Cr /g of sorbent within the experimental range.With the increase in pH values of solutions,the adsorption increased obviously,while the addition of electrolyte had a little effect on the adsorption.The adsorption equilibrium was reached after about 3 h.The adsorption of trivalent chromium by PMA-SS nanospheres was significantly higher than that done by SS powder under the same adsorption conditions.