Synergistic Effects on the Mercury Sorption Behaviors Using Hybrid Cellulose Fiber/Chitosan Foam

Abstract The aim of this study is to explore the use of a possible combination of both cellulose fiber and chitosan as natural renewable polymer to introduce a circular economy concept. In this work, cellulose fibers were incorporated into chitosan to prepare hybrid foam (1/5 w/w). The conditioned composite material was obtained by co‐dissolution in acetic acid using the freeze‐drying method. Column experiments were performed on the prepared foam to study the kinetic of mercury sorption to evaluate their feasibility and real applications in different industrial sectors. Experimental data show that the maximum adsorption capacity of mercury by hybrid cellulose fiber/chitosan foam is 400 mg g −1 , pH 4.0 at 20 °C. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy EDX and specific surface area with BET analysis were used to provide a qualitative estimation of the fabricated composite foam. To elucidate the chemical modification of the material, FT‐IR analysis was performed. The resulting composite foam still demonstrates excellent adsorption performance after regeneration.