Abstract
Background: Nanotubes serve an important role in heavy metal ions for the removal from wastewater. The efficiency of these nanotubes is dependent on the nature of surface, pH, temperature setting and the hydrothermal contact time.
Method: The current research sought to find out the efficiency of titanate nanotubes in the removal of Pb2+ and Cd2+ ions from wastewater. The research concentrated on mesoporosity, pH and hydrothermal contact time, as factors affecting the efficiency of titanate nanotubes in the removal of Pb2+ and Cd2+ ions. Titanate nanotubes were prepared at different hydrothermal conditions, the prepared nanotubes were used for efficient removal of Pb2+ and Cd2+. The following technologies were utilized in the research: (1). electron microscopy (FESEM), (2). X-ray diffraction (XRD), (3). high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), (4). FTIR and BET surface area were measured by N2 adsorption using Micrometrics TriStar II.
Results: The results obtained reveal that increasing the hydrothermal time improved the adsorption efficiency of the prepared material, where the Titanate nanotubes prepared at the longest time (23hr) achieved the highest removal efficiency for both Pb2+ and Cd2+ at pH 2 and pH 3, respectively. The nanotubes prepared at different conditions also showed significant activities, where the removal % exceeded 90 % for all samples at a pH range of 2 to 3.
Conclusion: It was conducted that the factors that affected the efficiency could be set at optimum and the removal efficiency attained be increased, to more than 90%.