Rational design, fabrication and characterization of a thiol-rich 3D-porous hypercrosslink polymer as a new engineered Hg2+ sorbent: enhanced selectivity and uptake

A novel water-insoluble mesoporous adsorbent based on a 3D-network polymer containing pendant thiol groups was synthesized via post-functionalization of the polymeric backbone for fast, efficient and selective removal of toxic mercury ions from aqueous solutions. The structural and textural properties of the newly designed adsorbent were characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), atomic force microscopy (AFM), elemental analysis (CHNS), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) and derivative thermogravimetric analysis (DTG). The synergistic incorporation of the porous matrix and active sites of this new adsorbent offered a unique combination for high-efficiency and high-selectivity Hg2+ removal, which made it a new class of solid-support sorbent for clean-up of contaminated water.