Kinetics, isotherm and chemical speciation analysis of Hg(Ⅱ) adsorption over oxygen-containing MXene adsorbent.

A facile method was used to prepare two-dimensional MXene for the treatment of heavy metal ions in wastewater. The adsorbent has good selectivity for the adsorption of Hg (Ⅱ) in mixed divalent cationic metal solutions due to a large number of oxygen-containing functional groups on the surface of the material. The adsorption of mercury was tested using mercuric chloride and mercury nitrate solutions. The Langmuir maximum adsorption capacity of the adsorbent at a pH of 5.0 and a temperature of 30 °C is 1057.3 mg/g (mercuric nitrate) and 773.29 mg/g (mercuric chloride), respectively. The adsorbent also maintains a high adsorption capacity at low pH (pH = 2.0). The removal rate of mercury-containing wastewater within 100 mg/L is nearly 100%. The chemical species of Hg-containing ions at different pH and temperatures was studied. It was found that the adsorbent could maintain a high adsorption capacity for different forms of Hg-containing ions.