Synthesis of copolymeric hydrogels of acrylamide and 2-(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) and its use for the adsorption of basic blue 3 dye
AbstractHomo and copolymer hydrogels of acrylamide and 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) were synthesized by free radical addition polymerization. The synthesized hydrogels were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal gravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TGA/DTA). The hydrogels were used as an adsorbent for the removal of toxic azo dye Basic blue 3 (BB3) in aqueous medium. To check the swelling property the equilibrium swelling of these synthesized hydrogels were established within 24 h. The effect of pH, time and temperature in the process of BB3 adsorption was studied in detail. The maximum adsorption of BB3 on hydrogels was occurred at pH 9 with 60 min equilibration time. The kinetic data were applied to pseudo first order, pseudo second order and intraparticle diffusion model. The obtained results indicate that the adsorption process, obey pseudo second order kinetics and is diffusion control. The negative value of ΔS and positive values of ΔG and ΔH showed that the adsorption process is orderliness, non-spontaneous and endothermic respectively in nature. The hydrogels were successfully regenerated from the mixture and used again in several steps without a reduction in their efficiency.