Synthesis of Ethylenediamine-modified Ordered Mesoporous Carbon as a New Nanoporous Adsorbent for Removal of Cu(II) and Pb(II) Ions from Aqueous Media

The mesoporous carbon (CMK-3) functionalized with ethylenediamine (EDA) has been synthesized (CMK-3-EDA) and applied as a new mesoporous adsorbent for removal of Cu(II) and Pb(II) cations from aqueous solutions. Nitrogen adsorption–desorption measurements (BET) show that surface area, pore size and pore volume of CMK-3 were significantly changed after amine modification. The BET surface area and pore diameter of functionalized product were 344.74 m2 .g−1 and 28.61Å, respectively. The adsorption conditions including contact time, pH value and adsorbent dosage of the sample solution were investigated in batch system and then determined by means of flam atomic absorption spectroscopy. Under experimental conditions, the adsorption capacity was 188.2 mg. g−1 and 196.64 mg. g−1 for Cu(II) and Pb(II) ions, respectively. The obtained high adsorption capacity of CMK-3 functionalized with EDA is due to the amine functional groups formed on the surface of CMK-3 which can react with Pb(II) and Cu(II) ions. Results show that the new synthesized porous material is a highly effective material for sorption of Pb(II) and Cu(II) ions in comparison to other adsorbents.