Improvement in Uranium Adsorption Properties of Amidoxime-Based Adsorbent Through Cografting of Amine Group

Amidoxime (AO)/amine co-functionalized polypropylene fiber adsorbents were prepared. The all-polymeric structures were characterized by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), optical microscope, contact angle meter and electron spin resonance (ESR) analysis methods, confirming the grafting, modification, and amidoximation stages gravimetrically, spectroscopically, and visually. The properties for the removal of uranyl(VI) from aqueous solutions were investigated. For amidoxime (AO) fiber, high adsorption rate was observed within the first 30 minutes and the plateau value of 40.6% uranium loading (0.0812 mg/g) was reached at around 30 minutes. The adsorption equilibrium for AO/amine fiber was attained within 20 minutes, resulting in the adsorption of 92.6% uranium loading (0.185 mg/g). The percentage of adsorption increases with increasing pH value (2–6), reaches a maximum at pH 6.0 and then remains almost constant for AO/amine fiber, whereas reduces slightly for AO fiber.