Polymeric Microspheres for Efficient Adsorption of Reactive Black 5 Dye: Adsorption Isotherms, Kinetics and Thermodynamic Evaluations

In parallel with the increasing human population, industry is growing rapidly, which also causes an increase in the amount of wastewater. Dyes, which represent the largest group of pollutants in wastewater, are utilized in various industries, mainly in the textile sector. In addition to the annual production of tons of dyes, significant quantities of dye-contaminated wastewater are released into the environment. In this study, poly(ethylene glycol dimethacrylate-N-methacryloyl-L-tryptophan methyl ester) (PEDMATP) microspheres were employed to adsorption one of the synthetic dyes, reactive black 5 (RB5), from the aqueous medium. The impacts of parameters such as pH, initial concentration, temperature, and contact time on adsorption were examined. The maximum RB5 adsorbed amount onto PEDMATP was determined as 20.06 mg/g at 277 K and pH=7. The data obtained are compatible with the Langmuir isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetic models. The polymeric microspheres could be reused up to 5 times with negligible losses (approximetly 15%) of adsorption capacity.