Synthesis of ultra-large ZrO2 nanosheets as novel adsorbents for fast and efficient removal of As(III) from aqueous solutions

Consumption of water having excessive arsenic (As) contamination can cause adverse health effects on human beings. In this study, novel ultra-large zirconium oxide (ZrO2) nanosheets were successfully synthesized using graphene oxide (GO) templates and their adsorption-ability was studied for arsenite (As (III)). Owing to higher values of surface area, numbers of available hydroxyl groups and strong chemisorption binding affinity towards As(III), the synthesized novel ultra-large ZrO2 nanosheets showed high adsorption-ability for As(III) over a wide pH range. Experimental results demonstrated that the maximum adsorption-ability of the ZrO2 nanosheets for As(III) reached to 74.9 mg/g at pH 6. BET, zeta potential, effect of initial pH, FTIR and XPS have been used to analyze the As(III) adsorption process on the ZrO2 nanosheets. The experiments for effects of co-existing ions indicated that ZrO2 nanosheets possessed good anti-interference ability towards co-existing ions. Furthermore, the ZrO2 nanosheets demonstrated very fast and excellent treatment of simulated real As(III) polluted water, consequently the effluent concentration met the standard regulated by World Health Organization. This study suggested that the as prepared ZrO2 nanosheets could be potentially applied in practical drinking water treatment. (C) 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.