title: Highly efficient removal of chromium(VI) from aqueous solution using polyaniline/sepiolite nanofibers.
abstract: Polyaniline/sepiolite (PANI/sepiolite) nanofibers were prepared by in situ chemical oxidation polymerization in the presence of sepiolite. The effect of aniline/sepiolite weight ratio on the nanostructure of PANI/sepiolite composites was investigated by field-emission scanning electron microscopy. The adsorption of Cr(VI) onto the PANI/sepiolite nanofibers was highly dependent on pH values. The pseudo-second-order and Langmuir isothermal models can well describe the adsorption kinetics and adsorption isotherm, respectively. The maximum adsorption capacity of the PANI/sepiolite nanofibers for Cr(VI) was up to 206.6 mg/g at 25 °C and increased with the increase in temperature. Desorption experiments indicated that PANI/sepiolite can be regenerated and reused for two consecutive cycles with no loss of its removal efficiency. PANI/sepiolite nanofibers can be used as a highly efficient and economically viable adsorbent for Cr(VI) removal due to their excellent adsorption characteristics.
authors.affiliation: School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Institute of Molecular Engineering & Applied Chemistry, Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan 243002, China E-mail: junchen@ahut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Institute of Molecular Engineering & Applied Chemistry, Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan 243002, China E-mail: junchen@ahut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Xiaoqin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Institute of Molecular Engineering & Applied Chemistry, Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan 243002, China E-mail: junchen@ahut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Qingdong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.affiliation: School of Materials Science and Engineering, Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan 243002, China.
authors.forename: Diankai
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Institute of Molecular Engineering & Applied Chemistry, Anhui University of Technology, Ma'anshan 243002, China E-mail: junchen@ahut.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Qianfeng
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhang