Recoverable cellulose composite adsorbents for anionic/cationic dyes removal

GO/HEC/PGDE/Fe3O4 materials were successfully fabricated using environmentally-friendly hydroxyethyl cel-lulose (HEC), poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PGDE), graphene oxide (GO) and magnetic Fe3O4. Sys-tematic investigations were completed to explore the influences of GO content in GO/HEC/PGDE/Fe3O4 and adsorption conditions on the adsorptions of cationic dyes (methylene blue (MB), crystal violet (CV)) and anionic dye acid blue 25 (AB-25). The increase of GO content can remarkably improve the adsorption capacity of GO/ HEC/PGDE/Fe3O4 for the dyes. The three kinetic, four isothermic and three thermodynamic models were investigated to reveal the adsorption behaviors of the dyes. The formation of HEC/PGDE/Fe3O4 and adsorption mechanisms of the dyes by GO/HEC/PGDE/Fe3O4 were suggested. The GO/HEC/PGDE/Fe3O4 endowed with easy-fabrication, eco-friendly feature, efficient adsorption capacity of anionic/cationic dyes, convenient sepa-ration and reusability has potential applications in wastewater purification industry.