Removal of dimethylarsinate from water by robust NU-1000 aerogels: Impact of the aerogel materials

This study compared the effect of three matrices on the dimethylarsinate (DMA) removal from water to NU-1000 (zirconium-based metal-organic framework, Zr-MOF) hybrid aerogels. The porous MOF hybrid aerogels were prepared by grafting NU-1000 into green matrices, i.e., agarose (AG), sodium alginate (SA), and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) sodium salt. The adsorption data of DMA can be well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic model and the Freundlich isotherm model. The maximum adsorption capacity of the NU-1000@AG hybrid aerogel for DMA (119.63 mg/g) was higher than the other two hybrid aerogels due to the negligible interference of AG on the active adsorption sites in NU-1000. However, the functional groups in NU-1000@CMC hybrid aerogel and NU-1000@SA hybrid aerogel occupied the Zr adsorption sites during the cross-linked process and decreased their adsorption capacities. The NU-1000@AG hybrid aerogel demonstrated application potential for removing DMA in a fixed-column dynamic adsorption process. Furthermore, the NU-1000 hybrid aerogels exhibited excellent regeneration performance and ease of solid-liquid separation. The characteristics of various matrices may offer diversified facile and viable strategies for fabricating a blocky adsorbent with superior sta-bility and solid-liquid separation efficiency for water treatment, overcoming the disadvantages of MOF powder and ensuring maximum effectiveness of adsorbent components.

Automated summary

This study compared the effect of three matrices on the removal of DMA from water to NU-1000 hybrid aerogels. The NU-1000@AG hybrid aerogel showed the highest adsorption capacity for DMA, while the NU-1000@CMC and NU-1000@SA hybrid aerogels had lower adsorption capacities due to interference from functional groups. The NU-1000 hybrid aerogels demonstrated excellent regeneration performance and solid-liquid separation efficiency.