Thermodynamic and kinetic study of adsorptive removal of lead by the nanocomposite loaded nanofibers.

Herein, the fabrication of electrospun nanocomposites, using polyacrylonitrile nanofibers (PNF) modified with nano-bentonite and fly ash, is explained. Further, the use of electrospun adsorbent for the remediation of Pb (II) ions from water has been explored. Pristine PNF and nanocomposites were characterized using SEM, EDX, and FTIR to analyze surface topology, elemental composition, and functional groups, respectively. The adsorptive behavior of developed adsorbents was investigated using the effects of dosage, initial concentration, time, and temperature. Pseudo-second order kinetics fit well with experimental data and the adsorption followed intra-particle diffusion. The thermodynamics study confirmed spontaneous endothermic adsorption of the heavy metal. Nanocomposites-based adsorbents showed improved adsorption capacity for Pb (II) ions compared to pristine PNF.