Removal of methylene blue from aqueous solutions by poly(2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid-co-itaconic acid) hydrogels

In this study, removal of methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution by poly(AMPS-co-IA) hydrogels was examined by batch equilibration technique. The effects of monomer ratio, concentration of initiator and crosslinker, pH, adsorption time, initial dye concentration and adsorption temperature on the removal of MB were studied. The results show that the removal of MB was highly effected by preparation conditions of hydrogel. The maximum removal was observed at 10/90 IA/AMPS monomer ratio, 1.0% KPS, and 10.0% MBAAm concentrations. Removal of MB was strongly affected by pH. Pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order and intraparticle diffusion models were applied. It was concluded that adsorption of MB on hydrogel followed pseudo-second-order kinetics. It was found that the adsorption isotherm of the MB fit Langmuir-type isotherms. From the Langmuir equation, the adsorption capacity was found as 1,000 mg/g for MB dye. Thermodynamic parameters suggest that the adsorption is a typical physical process, spontaneous, and exothermic in nature. Ten adsorption—desorption cycles demonstrated that the hydrogels were suitable for repeated use without considerable change in adsorption capacity. The results revealed that this hydrogels have potential to be used as an adsorbent for the removal of MB from aqueous solution.