Synergistic Effects of Psyllium/Okra Hybrid Backbone Based Bio-Sorbent for Efficient Sequestration of Toxic Uranyl(VI) Ions from Aqueous Media

In order to effectively utilize the okra mucilage and psyllium husk fibre based natural polysaccharides we have prepared acrylamide based semi-interpenetrating network by using citric acid and ammonium persulphate as the cross-linker-initiator system. This paper also discusses the swelling response of the crosslinked networks with respect to time, temperature and pH with maximum swelling percentage of 355%. This smart material designed was further explored for rapid elimination of uranyl(VI) ions from aqueous media. Response surface methodology (RSM) optimized sample showed excellent uptake efficiency via removal of uranyl(VI) ions which showed 97.1% uptake efficiency with an adsorbent dose of 1.0 g, initial concentration of 100 ppb and time duration of 1 h at room temperature. The synthesized sample was further characterized and compared with its respective backbones through techniques like FTIR, SEM-EDAX and PXRD. Thermogravimetric studies revealed the thermal stability of the bio-sorbent. Freundlich adsorption isotherm and pseudo first-order kinetics were favored in both cases. Thus, adsorption studies indicated that the synthesized semi-IPN prepared from natural blends effectively treats industrial waste commercially. The synthesized adsorbent hence proved to be an efficient device with an innovative approach towards environmental remediation.