Adsorption of ciprofloxacin and tetracycline from wastewater by layered double hydroxides modified vermiculite

The application of layered double hydroxides (LDHs) in remediation was challenged by easy stack and aggregation. To enhance the performance of antibiotics removal capacities, LDHs was supported by vermiculite (VER) through in-situ method (VER–LDH). The structural characterization revealed that LDHs grew on VER surface and formed a three-dimensional structure. Kinetics studies showed that the removal of antibiotics well fitted pseudo-second-order model and intraparticle diffusion model, revealing that adsorption sites are the main factor for adsorption process. Site energy distribution of VER, LDHs and VER–LDH for antibiotics adsorption was estimated based on the equilibrium adsorption data. The energy distribution were determined and indicated that the heterogeneity of the adsorption site. The average site energy of composite material showed a higher value, manifesting a stronger interaction strength between the adsorbent and antibiotics. The excellent removal performance provided a promising strategy in sewage water remediation.