Removal of Cu(II) from Aqueous Medium Using Chitosan/nSiO2 Nanocomposite: Fixed-Bed Adsorption Study and Modeling
- 1Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Calcutta, 92, A. P. C. Road, Kolkata 700009, India
- 2St. James’ School, 165, A. J. C. Bose Road, Kolkata 700014, India
Abstract
The study aims to use Chitosan/nSiO2 Nanocomposite (CSNC) as an adsorbent to eliminate toxic Cu(II) ions from its aqueous solution using a fixed-bed continuous column system. nSiO2 was synthesized from rice husk ash. The adsorption investigations were performed at optimum pH 6.5 under different operating conditions, such as bed height (3–7 cm), influent flow rates (30–50 mL min−1), and influent Cu(II) concentration (10–30 mg L−1). The removal of Cu(II) was increased with the column’s bed depth but reduced with flow rate and adsorbate concentration. Experimental observations were employed to study seven kinetic models. The Thomas model was confirmed to be the best-fit kinetic model corresponding to 3 cm bed height, a column diameter of 1.5 cm, 30 mL min−1 flow rate, and an initial metal concentration of 30 mgL−1. A regeneration study and scale-up design were also reported. MLR (R2 > 0.98) and GA techniques (R2 = 1) were also applied to forecast the elimination of Cu(II). The performance of the prepared nanocomposite adsorbent was evaluated on a laboratory scale for removing Cu(II) from synthetic wastewater. This study integrates sustainability and circular economy principles in the application of adsorbents by focusing on their synthesis, utilization in fixed-bed continuous column systems, regeneration, and safe disposal.
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BibTeX
@article{bhattacharya2026removal,
title = {{Removal of Cu(II) from Aqueous Medium Using Chitosan/nSiO2 Nanocomposite: Fixed-Bed Adsorption Study and Modeling}},
author = {Samanwita Bhattacharya and Nirjhar Bar and Baisali Rajbansi and Sudip Kumar Das},
journal = {Polymers},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3390/polym18212791},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/21/2791},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Removal of Cu(II) from Aqueous Medium Using Chitosan/nSiO2 Nanocomposite: Fixed-Bed Adsorption Study and Modeling
AU - Samanwita Bhattacharya
AU - Nirjhar Bar
AU - Baisali Rajbansi
AU - Sudip Kumar Das
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/08
JO - Polymers
DO - 10.3390/polym18212791
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/21/2791
AB - The study aims to use Chitosan/nSiO2 Nanocomposite (CSNC) as an adsorbent to eliminate toxic Cu(II) ions from its aqueous solution using a fixed-bed continuous column system. nSiO2 was synthesized from rice husk ash. The adsorption investigations were performed at optimum pH 6.5 under different operating conditions, such as bed height (3–7 cm), influent flow rates (30–50 mL min−1), and influent Cu(II) concentration (10–30 mg L−1). The removal of Cu(II) was increased with the column’s bed depth but reduced with flow rate and adsorbate concentration. Experimental observations were employed to study seven kinetic models. The Thomas model was confirmed to be the best-fit kinetic model corresponding to 3 cm bed height, a column diameter of 1.5 cm, 30 mL min−1 flow rate, and an initial metal concentration of 30 mgL−1. A regeneration study and scale-up design were also reported. MLR (R2 > 0.98) and GA techniques (R2 = 1) were also applied to forecast the elimination of Cu(II). The performance of the prepared nanocomposite adsorbent was evaluated on a laboratory scale for removing Cu(II) from synthetic wastewater. This study integrates sustainability and circular economy principles in the application of adsorbents by focusing on their synthesis, utilization in fixed-bed continuous column systems, regeneration, and safe disposal.
SN - 2073-4360
ER -