Preparation of sodium alginate / quaternary ammonium-functionalized chitosan adsorbents: For the removal of high-molecular-weight invert sugar alkaline degradation products.

The composite adsorbent consisting of sodium alginate (SA) and quaternary ammonium-functionalized chitosan (QACS) was prepared using the calcium slow-release method to remove high-molecular-weight invert sugar alkaline degradation products (HISADPs) from the beet juice. The SA/QACS composite adsorbent has a honeycomb porous structure. Comparing the single-component QACS dispersion and SA adsorbent, the incorporation of SA increased the storage/elastic modulus (G') and loss/viscous modulus (G'') of the SA/QACS composite hydrogels, while the incorporation of QACS enhanced the adsorption capacity of the SA/QACS composite adsorbents. Specifically, when 5 % QACS and 2 % SA were added, both G' and G" of the SA/QACS adsorbent were approximately 100 times greater than those corresponding to the QACS dispersion. Concurrently, its maximum adsorption capacity attained 164.5 mg/g, which was superior to that of the SA adsorbent. The adsorption isotherms and adsorption kinetics further demonstrated that the Langmuir model and the pseudo-second-order (PSO) model were congruent with the adsorption data of the SA/QACS composite adsorbent concerning HISADPs. Overall, these findings highlight the potential of the SA/QACS adsorbent as an effective adsorbent for the removal of HISADPs from beet juice.