Efficient adsorption of As(V) on poly(acrylo-amidino ethylene amine) nanofiber membranes

Poly(acrylo-amidino ethylene amine) (PAEA) nanofiber membranes have been synthesized by combining the electrospinning technique and subsequent chemical modification. The membranes were used to remove As(V) from aqueous solution. The adsorption kinetics, equilibrium isotherms, and pH effect were investigated in batch experiments. The Langmuir isotherm and pseudo second-order kinetic models agree well with the experimental data. The PAEA nanofibers are effective for As(V) adsorption at pH 3. Experimental results showed that the maximum adsorption capacity of the PAEA nanofibers with As(V) is 76.92 mg g-1 , which is much higher than that of the PAEA microfibers (27.62 mg g-1 ). The adsorption rate of PAEA nanofibers is faster than that of PAEA microfibers due to its higher specific surface area. The PAEA nanofibers can be used as an effective adsorbent for the removal of As(V) in aqueous solution due to high adsorption capacity and short adsorption time to achieve equilibrium.