Adsorption of humic acid and Eu(III) to multi-walled carbon nanotubes: Effect of pH, ionic strength and counterion effect

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have come under intense multidisciplinary study because of their unique physicochemical properties. Understanding adsorptive interactions of simultaneous humic substances (HS) and radionuclides on CNTs is critical to understand the pollution of radionuclides and the assessment of potential impact of CNTs on the behavior of HS and radionuclides. In this paper, the adsorption of humic acid (HA) and Eu(III) on multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are studied as a function of pH and ionic strength. The results indicate that the adsorption of Eu(III) and HA on MWCNTs is strongly dependent on pH and ionic strength, and the presence of HA enhances Eu(III) adsorption to HA-MWCNT hybrids. The XPS analysis indicates that the functional groups of HA contribute to Eu(III) adsorption to MWCNTs.