Synthesis and Th(IV) sorption characteristics of functionalised graphene oxide

A functionalised graphene oxide (FGO) adsorbent was prepared via the gamma-radiation-induced grafting of epichlorohydrin (ECH) onto graphene oxide (GO). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed that ECH was successfully introduced to the GO surface. The grafting yield of ECH increased with an increase of the irradiation dose and with a decrease of the irradiation dose rate. The sorption kinetics of Th(IV) on GO and FGO followed the pseudo-second-order model and the sorption isotherms can be described by the Langmuir model. The maximum sorption capacities of GO and FGO for Th(IV) are approximately 5.80 x 10(-4) and 2.88 x 10(-5) mol/L, respectively. GOs is considered as a kind of materials with high radiation resistance and large sorption capacities, ranking it has high potential industrial applications even under strong radiation environment. In addition, the amount of the oxygen-containing functional groups C=O and O=C-O in FGO decrease with the increase of the irradiation dose, which suggests that C=O and O=C-O contribute more than C-O to the sorption of Th(IV) onto GO and FGO.Chemistry, AnalyticalChemistry, Inorganic & NuclearNuclear Science & TechnologySCI(E)0ARTICLEliucl@pku.edu.cn1489-49630