Microwave Enhanced Synthesis of Sulfonated Chitosan-Montmorillonite for Effective Removal of Methylene Blue

In this work, sulfonated chitosan montmorillonite composite (S-CS-MT) beads were synthesized using a microwave irradiation method designed to have a better saving-time procedure. The potency of S-CS-MT as an adsorbent was assessed for the removal of cationic dyes such as methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution. The batch adsorption experiments indicated that MB adsorption onto S-CS-MT follows the Pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm model. The maximum extent obtained from the Langmuir isotherm model for MB adsorption was 188.2 mg g?1 at 303 K. The thermodynamic study indicated that the adsorption reaction is favorable and spontaneous in nature. These findings indicated that montmorillonite chitosan grafted with the sulfonate group has the ability and efficacy as biohybrid adsorbent for the adsorption of cationic dyes.The authors would like to acknowledge the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), Malaysia, for supporting this project under the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) (203/PJJAUH/6711445). Nur Shazwani Abdul Mubarak would like to thank Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) for the fellowship under the USM Fellowship program. The authors also would like to thank School of Distance Education, School of Chemical Sciences, School of Physics and Centre for Global Archaeological Research, USM for its research facilities.Scopu