Abstract
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•Cotton cloth was modified with chitosan for reactive dye removal from aqueous media.•The Remazol Brilliant Red F3B (RR) was sensitively removed by the modified composites.•The Langmuir isotherm was well-fitted with maximum adsorption of 169.33 mg/g.•The composite was reused in several cycles without losing the original performance.
Dye wastewater has a severe influence on the natural water environment. Using materials functioned by adsorption to remove dyes has received much attention due it’s to its high decolorization or removal efficiency. The study aims to complement chitosan-treated cotton composite material for toxic dye removal from contaminated water to save human health. The work identifies and analyses the removal of reactive dye (Remazol Brilliant Red F3B (RR)) and proffers its high adsorption ability with chitosan-cotton composite. The dye removal parameter was performed based on the solution pH, contact time, initial concentration, competing for ion affinity, maximum adsorption capacity, and reuses with potential use. The solution pH was shown important parameter to RR dye uptake and a suitable pH of 7.0 was selected according to high adsorption ability. The competing ions were not adversely affected in the dye adsorption as expected of a stable bonding mechanism. The adsorption results were highly fitted with the Langmuir adsorption isotherm model and the maximum adsorption was 169.33 mg/g. The chitosan-cotton composite displayed high reusability based on the elution and simultaneous regeneration ability. The adsorbed RR dye was eluted using ethanol and reused for the next operation after washing with water without significant deterioration.