Safe water supply has become one of the main concerns of our society due to the intense industrial activities generating hazardous waste. Among the water pollutants, copper ions are known for potential diseases caused by accumulation of this metal. Therefore, different adsorbents have been produced for this purpose, highlighting aerogels for their effective adsorption owing to their high surface areas and porosity. Herein the synthesis of a novel silica aerogel-based composite for copper removal is described. It was produced by the sol–gel technique, synthesizing the silica aerogel into a reticulated-polyurethane foam that acted as a macrocellular skeleton, preventing a strong shrinkage of the aerogel during the ambient pressure drying. The produced aerogels and composites were characterized in terms of density, textural properties, hydrophobicity, and copper removal efficiency. Isotherm studies revealed a significantly improved adsorption capacity in comparison with the monolithic aerogel, reaching a maximum value of 46.13 mg g−1. The predominant adsorption mechanism was Langmuir- Freundlich adsorption. The adsorption kinetics were also evaluated by different models, as well as the ability to function as filtration medium. Therefore, this work provides a promising strategy for copper uptake avoiding tedious filtration steps to separate the adsorbent, thus reducing time and costs.

中文翻译：

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通过易于处理的二氧化硅气凝胶-聚氨酯泡沫复合材料增强从水中的铜吸附去除能力


由于密集的工业活动会产生危险废物，安全供水已成为我们社会的主要关注点之一。在水污染物中，铜离子因这种金属的积累而引起的潜在疾病而闻名。因此，为此目的生产了不同的吸附剂，突出了气凝胶由于其高表面积和孔隙率而具有有效的吸附能力。本文描述了一种用于除铜的新型二氧化硅气凝胶基复合材料的合成。它是通过溶胶-凝胶技术生产的，将二氧化硅气凝胶合成成网状聚氨酯泡沫，该泡沫充当大孔骨架，防止气凝胶在环境压力干燥过程中强烈收缩。从密度、织构特性、疏水性和除铜效率方面对所制备的气凝胶和复合材料进行了表征。等温线研究表明，与整体气凝胶相比，吸附能力显著提高，达到最大值 46.13 mg g-1。主要的吸附机制是 Langmuir-Freundlich 吸附。还通过不同的模型评估了吸附动力学，以及作为过滤介质的能力。因此，这项工作提供了一种很有前途的铜吸收策略，避免了分离吸附剂的繁琐过滤步骤，从而减少了时间和成本。