Adsorption of heavy metal ion from aqueous single metal solution by chemically modified sugarcane bagasse Osvaldo Karnitz Jr. a , Leandro Vinicius Alves Gurgel a , Ju ´lio Ce ´sar Perin de Melo a , Vagner Roberto Botaro a , Ta ˆnia Ma ´rcia Sacramento Melo a , Rossimiriam Pereira de Freitas Gil b , Laurent Fre ´de ´ric Gil a, * a Departamento de Quı ´mica, Instituto de Cie ˆncias Exatas e Biolo ´ gicas, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, 35400-000 Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil b Departamento de Quı ´mica, Instituto de Cie ˆncias Exatas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil Received 22 November 2005; received in revised form 28 April 2006; accepted 2 May 2006 Available online 14 July 2006 Abstract This work describes the preparation of new chelating materials derived from sugarcane bagasse for adsorption of heavy metal ions in aqueous solution. The first part of this report deals with the chemical modification of sugarcane bagasse with succinic anhydride. The carboxylic acid functions introduced into the material were used to anchor polyamines, which resulted in two yet unpublished modified sugarcane bagasse materials. The obtained materials were characterized by elemental analysis and infrared spectroscopy (IR). The sec- ond part of this reports features the comparative evaluation of the adsorption capacity of the modified sugarcane bagasse materials for Cu 2+ , Cd 2+ , and Pb 2+ ions in aqueous single metal solution by classical titration. Adsorption isotherms were studied by the Freundlich and Langmuir models. Ó 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Adsorption; Modified sugarcane bagasse; Polyamines; Isotherm; Heavy metals 1. Introduction Water pollution is a major environmental problem faced by modern society (Baird, 1995) that leads to eco- logical disequilibrium and health hazards (Kelter et al., 1997). Heavy metal ions such as copper, cadmium, lead, nickel, and chromium, often found in industrial waste- water, present acute toxicity to aquatic and terrestrial life, including humans. Thus, the discharge of effluents into the environment is a chief concern. The methods commonly used to remove toxic heavy metal from municipal and industrial wastewater are based on the adsorption of ions onto insoluble compounds and the separation of the sed- iments formed. Many efforts have been made recently to find cheaper pollution control methods and materials (Panday et al., 1985; Ali and Bishtawi, 1997; Acemiog ˘lu and Alma, 2001). The new material world trends point to the importance of using industrial and agricultural residues as production starting materials. Reusing and recycling these residues can minimize the environmental problems associated with their build-up and reduce the use of noble starting materi- als. This trend has contributed to the reconsideration of the use of traditional biomaterials such as natural lignocellu- losic fibers to substitute synthetic polymers, for example, since in many cases they have a better performance. Brazil is the world leading producer of sugarcane for both the alcohol and the sugar industries. These industries produce a large amount of sugarcane bagasse and although it is burned to produce energy for sugar mills, leftovers are still significant. Thus, on account of the importance of 0960-8524/$ - see front matter Ó 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2006.05.013 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 3135591717; fax: +55 315511707. E-mail address: laurent@iceb.ufop.br (L.F. Gil). Bioresource Technology 98 (2007) 1291–1297