Hydrogel of gelatin in the presence of graphite for the adsorption of dye: Towards the concept for water purification

Gelatin grafted environment-friendly hydrogel composite was utilized to perform the effective adsorption of methyl violet (MV) dye. Due to non-toxic, high surface zone and biodegradability, gelatin has received considerable attention for sustainable applications. Gelatin grafted methyl methacrylate (GE-g-MMA) hydrogels were prepared through the microwave-assisted green method. The GE-g-MMA hydrogel showed the highest swelling of 1039.4 %. Graphite (Gph) was introduced in GE-g-MMA hydrogel matrix to construct gelatin grafted methyl methacrylate/graphite (GE-g-MMA/Gph) hydrogel composite for adsorptive removal of poisonous methyl violet (MV) dye from water. The GE-g-MMA hydrogel and GE-g-MMA/Gph hydrogel composite were described through FTIR, XPS, SEM, Raman, XRD, TGA and BET techniques. Various adsorption factors like adsorbent dose, % removal of dye, contact period and solution pH were examined to develop ideal adsorption conditions. The GE-g-MMA/Gph hydrogel composite exhibited high adsorption efficiency of 99.9 % in 40 min (pH 9, MV: 50 mg L-1, adsorbent dose: 20 mg, MV volume: 20 ml). Experimental analysis results revealed that the synthesized GE-g-MMA/Gph hydrogel composite has a high capacity to remove MV molecules from aqueous solution at 25 degrees C. The values of the regression coefficient (R-2) in case of Frendluich (0.999), Langmuir (0.978), Dubinin-Radushkevitch (0.936) and Temkin (0.931) clearly showed that the Freundlich isotherm fitted best to the adsorption process and pseudo-first-order kinetics demonstrated the better fit of adsorption with highest R-2 (0.935). The GE-g-MMA/Gph hydrogel composite is economical, after six regeneration cycles, the adsorption efficiency of 95.8 % has been maintained.

Automated summary

Gelatin grafted environment-friendly hydrogel composite was used for the effective adsorption of methyl violet (MV) dye, showing excellent adsorption efficiency. The GE-g-MMA/Gph hydrogel composite exhibited significant advantages in adsorption efficiency, demonstrating environmentally friendly and cost-effective characteristics.