Graphene oxide coated quartz sand as a high performance adsorption material in the application of water treatment

In order to increase the water treatment performance, the quartz sand filter medium was improved by surface modification using a 3-aminopropyltriethoxy silane coupling agent (KH550), then GO was grafted to the surface of the sand though the chemical reaction between the functional groups. The interfacial interactions between the quartz sand surface and GO was studied. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analyses showed that the GO binds strongly to the quartz sand surface. Scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) observation showed that a thin GO layer was formed on the surface of the modified quartz sand. The modified sand was used as a sorbent for the removal of turbidity, organic matter, Cd(II) and Pb(II) ions from large volumes of aqueous solutions. The results indicate that the GO plays an important role in improving the water treatment performance of a quartz sand filter.