Facile Synthesis of Hydrophobic Loofah-Chitin Aerogel for Efficient Removal of Benzene and Toluene

The benzene series is a representative water-soluble pollutant generated from oil spills. This study reports the synthesis of a novel methyltrimethoxysilane-coated loofah-chitin aerogel (MLCA) via a solvothermal process to remove benzene and toluene from an aqueous phase. The resultant MLCA was characterized via scanning electron microscopy, N-2 adsorption measurements, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The MLCA exhibited good adsorption capacities for benzene (Q(t), 4.6 mg) and toluene (Q(t), 5.5 mg) removal because of its large specific surface area as well as abundant pores and adsorption sites. The adsorption isotherm data were accurately fitted using the Langmuir model. Moreover, the adsorption kinetic model was more consistent with the pseudo-first order model. Further calculation of the thermodynamic parameters, namely Delta G, Delta H, and Delta S, illustrated the adsorption equilibrium and mechanism. Because the loofah sponge is a low-cost raw material with abundant biomass, the resulting MLCA shows great promise for use as an efficient adsorbent to remove organic pollutants from sea water.