Efficient adsorption of BPA and Pb2+ by sulfhydryl-rich β-cyclodextrin polymers

At present, endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and heavy metals (HMs) are increasingly polluting water. In this work, we prepared a sulfhydryl-rich β-cyclodextrin polymer (SH-CDP) for the adsorption of Pb2+ and bisphenol A (BPA), as the representatives of HMs and EDCs, respectively. SH-CDP have excellent adsorption performance with theoretical maximum adsorption capacity of 604.65 mg/g and 287.88 mg/g for Pb2+ and BPA, respectively. The adsorption process of Pb2+ by SH-CDP reaches equilibrium quickly within 60 s because of chelation between Pb2+ and sulfhydryl group, suggesting an ultra-fast adsorption rate. Since the adsorption sites of Pb2+ and BPA by SH-CDP are independent, the adsorption performance is still favorable under the coexistence of Pb2+ and BPA. Furthermore, SH-CDP maintains stable adsorption performance after five consecutive cycles. These results demonstrate that SH-CDP is a potential material capable of effectively treating HMs and EDCs in wastewater.