Evaluation of ion exchange material from sulfonated polystyrene waste synthesized for removal Cr3+ from aqueous solution by column experiment

Abstract

The paper aims to study the effect of operating conditions in the column experiment with the ion exchange material which was prepared in optimum synthesized conditions. Polystyrene waste from disposable food packaging was dissolved in cyclohexane and sulfonated by sulfuric acid to synthesize cation exchange materials which were applied to remove Cr3+ in water by the ion exchange principle. The optimum conditions for this method were found out and described in previously published literature of the author. Characterization by SEM and Fourier Transforms Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy proved that the additional Sulfonic groups were presented. The efficiency of Cr3+ removal was highly affected by column bed height, initial ion concentrations and flow rate of effluent. The highest efficiency of material was 84.0% with a material bed height of 10 cm in the removal of Cr3+ from simulated wastewater containing initial Cr3+ concentration of 120 mg/l. The experimental data obtained from this study was consistent with Thomas and Yoon-Nelson kinetic models, which will be applied for column design in practical study and design. The results from this method can help reduce the plastic waste and easy to apply in practice for removal of Cr3+ in wastewater. Keywords: ion exchange; polystyrene waste; synthesize; chromium.