Enhanced adsorption of resorcinol onto phosphate functionalized graphene oxide synthesized via Arbuzov Reaction: A proposed mechanism of hydrogen bonding and π-π interactions

Phosphate functionalized graphene oxide (PGO) was successfully prepared by Arbuzov reaction and employed for adsorption of resorcinol from an aqueous phase. The phosphate functional groups were successfully incorporated onto the PGO surface by the formation of P-C bonds as identified by the analysis of FTIR and XPS spectra. The evaluation of adsorption capacity of resorcinol onto PGO exhibited significant improvement of resorcinol removal, achieving an adsorption capacity of 50.25 mg/g in the pH range of 4-7 which was 15 times higher than pristine graphene oxide. The addition of 2.4 M and 5 M NaC1 in the adsorption system significantly increased the adsorption capacity towards resorcinol from 50.25 mg/g to 82.10 mg/g and 128.10 mg/g, respectively. Based on kinetics and adsorption isotherm studies, Pseudo-First-Order and Langmuir model are the best model to describe the adsorption process indicating that the adsorption is dominantly controlled by physisorption. The thermodynamic analysis suggested that the adsorption process was the favorable, spontaneous, and endothermic process. Besides, the interplay of hydrogen bonding and pi-pi interactions is proposed to be the governing physisorption mechanism. The outstanding reusability and better adsorption performance make PGO a promising adsorbent for environmental remediation of resorcinol.

Automated summary

Phosphate functionalized graphene oxide (PGO) was successfully prepared for adsorption of resorcinol from an aqueous phase, showing significantly improved adsorption performance and potential for environmental remediation.