Preparation of mesoporous silica nanoparticles molecularly imprinted polymer for efficient separation and enrichment of perfluorooctane sulfonate

As a persistent organic pollutant, perfluorooctane sulfonate has drawn a worldwide attention. In this contribution, a novel molecularly imprinted polymer based on mesoporous silica nanoparticles was prepared for efficient separation and enrichment of perfluorooctane sulfonate in water samples. The polymer was characterized by transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and N2 adsorption/desorption experiments. The static adsorption experiments and the adsorption kinetic tests were conducted. The results showed that the adsorbents had high adsorption capacity (21.10 mg/g) and short adsorption equilibration time (25 min). Meanwhile, the effect of mesoporous silica nanoparticles on the adsorption capacity was investigated. The results indicated that the mesoporous structure helped to increase the adsorption capacity of adsorbent to adsorbate. Besides, the adsorbents show good specificity and good reusability with the adsorption capacity of adsorbent toward perfluorooctane sulfonate decreasing <5% after five adsorption-desorption cycles. The mesoporous silica nanoparticles molecularly imprinted polymer has been used successfully for the removal of perfluorooctane sulfonate in environmental water samples with relative standard deviation ≤4.64%.