Microwave Irradiation-Assisted Synthesis of Anisotropic Crown Ether-Grafted Bamboo Pulp Aerogel as a Chelating Agent for Selective Adsorption of Heavy Metals (Mⁿ⁺)

Crown ether is widely used in water purification because of its ring structure and good selective adsorption of specific heavy metals. However, its high cost and difficulty in recycling limit the purification of heavy metals in water. The anisotropic [2,4]-dibenzo-18-crown-6-modified bamboo pulp aerogel (DB18C6/PA) is successfully synthesized by microwave irradiation and directional freezing technology. The physical and chemical properties of DB18C6/PA are analyzed by FTIR, XPS, SEM, TEM, TGA, surface area and porosity analyzers. Single or multivariate systems containing Pb²⁺, Cu²⁺ and Cd²⁺ are used as adsorbents. The effects of the DB18C6 addition amount, pH, initial concentration and adsorption temperature on the adsorption of DB18C6/PA are systematically explored. Pseudo-first-order kinetic models, pseudo-second-order kinetic models and the isothermal adsorption models of Langmuir and Freundlich are used to fit the experimental data. The adsorption selectivity is analyzed from the distribution coefficient and the separation factor, and the adsorption mechanism is discussed. The results show that anisotropic DB18C6/PA has the characteristics of 3D directional channels, high porosity (97.67%), large specific surface area (103.7 m²/g), good thermal stability and regeneration (the number of cycles is greater than 5). The surface has a variety of functional groups, including a hydroxyl group, aldehyde group, ether bond, etc. In the single and multivariate systems of Pb²⁺, Cu²⁺ and Cd²⁺, the adsorption process of DB18C6/PA conforms to the pseudo-second-order kinetic model, and the results conform to the Freundlich adsorption isothermal model (a few of them conformed to the Langmuir adsorption isothermal model), indicating that chemical adsorption and physical adsorption are involved in the adsorption process, and the adsorption process is a spontaneous endothermic process. In the single solution system, the maximum adsorption capacities of Pb²⁺, Cu²⁺ and Cd²⁺ by DB18C6/PA are 129.15, 29.85 and 27.89 mg/g, respectively. The adsorption selectivity of DB18C6/PA on Pb²⁺, Cu²⁺ and Cd²⁺ is in the order of Pb²⁺ >> Cu²⁺ > Cd²⁺.