Improved preparation of electrospun MgO ceramic fibers with mesoporous structure and the adsorption properties for lead and cadmium

Mesoporous MgO has been used as an adsorbent for the removal of contaminants in water and exhibited outstanding performances. However, the agglomeration phenomena of nanoscale MgO adsorbents suppressed the adsorption capabilities. Herein, compound citrate and propionate ligands were selected as template-free precursors to fabricate the electrospun mesoporous MgO ceramic fibers. The MgO ceramic fibers possessed mesoporous structure with high surface area of 232.34 m(2)/g and high total pore volume of 0.560 cm(3)/g. Structure and composition of fibers heat-treated in air and water vapor were investigated systematically. And the MgO ceramic fiber showed high adsorption capacities of 2983.4 mg/g and 1824.0 mg/g for Pb(II) and Cd(II), respectively. The interaction mechanism between MgO fibers and heavy metal ions were thoroughly discussed. The high capacity of mesoporous MgO ceramic fiber was benefited from the hydroxyl-rich surface to release sufficient OH- and the good movability in water. Mesoporous MgO ceramic fibers prepared in the present method with fine quality might become an effective prescription for heavy metal pollution.