Novel Functional Material of Starch Microsphere and the Adsorption Properties for Divalent Nickel

Starch microsphere (SM) is a novel adsorption material for Ni (II) considering its microporous structure, high surface area and easy accessibility with the presence of active groups such as hydroxyl and amino group. This study investigated the adsorption of Ni (II) ion on starch microsphere prepared from starch as rude material. The heteroatoms in SM such as nitrogen and oxygen can form coordination with Ni (II), and the microsphere surface porous structure can greatly improved the reaction. The successful adsorption of Ni (II) on SM was confirmed using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The crystal structure of SM was destroyed after the incorporation of Ni (II), and this was proved using X-ray diffraction (XRD). And the adsorption kinetic data displayed a faster adsorption rate, the Freundlich equation was used to describe the adsorption isotherms, the maximum equilibrium adsorption capacity (Q (m)) was obtained to Ni (II) is 1.93 mmol/g.