Radiation grafting of ionically crosslinked alginate/chitosan beads with acrylic acid for lead sorption

Radiation-induced grafting of acrylic acid onto alginate/chitosan beads was performed in solution at a dose rate of 20.6 Gy/min of Co-60 gamma rays. The effect of absorbed dose on grafting yield was investigated. The characterization of the grafted and un-grafted beads was performed by FTIR spectroscopy and the swelling measurements at different pHs was studied. It is found that as the pH value increases the swelling degree increases up to pH 6 but with further increase in pH value the swelling decreases. Also, it is noticed that the grafting yield increased with increase the irradiation dose. Both un-grafted and grafted alginate/chitosan beads were examined as sorbents for the removal of Pb ions from aqueous solutions. The sorption behavior of the sorbents was examined through pH, and equilibrium measurements. Grafted alginate/chitosan beads presented higher sorption capacity for Pb ions than un-grafted beads.