A New Application of a Mesoporous Hybrid of Tungsten Oxide and Carbon as an Adsorbent for Elimination of Sr2+ and Co2+ from an Aquatic Environment

The mesoporous tungsten oxide and carbon (WOx/C) nanowire network was successfully synthesized using an environmentally friendly solvothermal method. The as-prepared composite was applied as an adsorbent for metal ion elimination from wastewater via batch experiments. The adsorption results suggested that the adsorption interactions between WOx/C and Sr2+ and Co2+ were pH-dependent, while the effect of ionic strength toward sorption capacity depended on the solution acidity and adsorbates. The sorption process followed the Langmuir model with the maximum sorption capacity of Sr2+ and Co2+ onto WOx/C being 175.0 and 326.0 mg/g at 308 K, respectively. Thermodynamic parameters, namely, Delta S degrees, Delta H degrees, and Delta G degrees, indicated an endothermic, but spontaneous adsorption process. All the exhibited results demonstrated that the as-synthesized WOx/C nanowire network has the potential to be an effective adsorbent for heavy metal ion remediation from aqueous solutions.