Single step synthesis of a polyhydroxy ether and its optimization to adsorption of a textile dye

[Display omitted] •A novel anion-exchange resin with high adsorption capacity was synthesized from imidazole and ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether.•The use of the imidazole moiety as charge carrier in the final resin allows the synthesis of the material in one step, avoiding further modification.•The polyhydroxy ether obtained was characterized with NMR, RAMAN and FT-IR and its structure elucidated.•An experimental design was performed to optimize the performance of the material in a flow system. An ion exchange resin was designed by combining different ratios of ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (EGDE) and imidazole (IM). The aim of the research was to obtain in a single step a resin with permanent positive charges. The strategy was to use the IM in a dual way, first as a curing agent during the synthesis and as carrier of the permanentpositive charge in the final product. This novel procedure avoid further modification of the resin, reducing time and cost of production. The material with 1:0.3 EGDE:IM molar ratio achieved high adsorption capacity for the textile dye, Remazol Black B (qmax: 1.33 × 103 mg g−1) and good performance in a continuous adsorption system. The water uptake was 592% and pH independent. 1H-NMR confirmed the covalent binding of IM to the polyelectrolyte chain, and the FTIR results evidenced epoxy opening. The shielding of the positive charge resulting from the electrostatic interaction of this polyelectrolyte with Remazol Black B induced some degree of chain shrinkage, according to SEM images and to the visual inspection. In the attempt to optimize the performance of the fixed bed adsorption system an experimental design was carried out. The multilinear regression model allowed the acquisition of a deeper knowledge of the experimental space and opening the way to further improvement of the process.