Sulfonated „Lagenaria vulgaris“ shell as a potent biosorbent for copper at low pHs

Abstract

Lagenaria vulgaris shell is composed of lignocellulosic material with the ability to bind metal cations due to hydroxyl, carboxylic, lactonic, and phenolic groups present in its structure. To introduce a greater amount of sulphonic groups characterized by significant ion-exchanging capacity, oxidation, and successive sulfonation were performed. The efficiency of biosorbent based on chemically modified Lagenaria vulgaris shell for Cu(II) ion removal from aqueous solution was studied in batch conditions on various initial pHs. Results showed that removal efficiency (95%) did not change in the pH range from 2.0 to 5.0.