Functionalization of Magnetic Chitosan Particles for the Sorption of U(VI), Cu(II) and Zn(II)—Hydrazide Derivative of Glycine-Grafted Chitosan

A new magnetic functionalized derivative of chitosan is synthesized and characterized for the sorption of metal ions (environmental applications and metal valorization). The chemical modification of the glycine derivative of chitosan consists of: activation of the magnetic support with epichlorohydrin, followed by reaction with either glycine to produce the reference material (i.e., Gly sorbent) or glycine ester hydrochloride, followed by hydrazinolysis to synthesize the hydrazide functionalized sorbent (i.e., HGly sorbent). The materials are characterized by titration, elemental analysis, FTIR analysis (Fourrier-transform infrared spectrometry), TGA analysis (thermogravimetric analysis) and with SEM-EDX (scanning electron microscopy coupled to energy dispersive X-ray analysis). The sorption performances for U(VI), Cu(II), and Zn(II) are tested in batch systems. The sorption performances are compared for Gly and HGly taking into account the effect of pH, the uptake kinetics (fitted by the pseudo-second order rate equation), and the sorption isotherms (described by the Langmuir and the Sips equations). The sorption capacities of the modified sorbent reach up to 1.14 mmol U g-1, 1.69 mmol Cu g-1, and 0.85 mmol Zn g-1. In multi-metal solutions of equimolar concentration, the chemical modification changes the preferences for given metal ions. Metal ions are desorbed using 0.2 M HCl solutions and the sorbents are re-used for five cycles of sorption/desorption without significant loss in performances.