Selective separation of cesium from radioactive liquid waste by potassium copper hexacyanoferrate (II)-clinoptilolite composite

Potassium copper hexacyanoferrate (II)–clinoptilolite (KCuHCF–CL) composite was prepared for cesium removal in this study. The composite was characterized by FT-IR, SEM and TGA analyses. The effects of several factors such as contact time, temperature, concentration, pH and competitive ions were investigated. The prepared sorbents were better fitted to the pseudo-second order kinetic model and Langmuir isotherm. The maximum adsorption capacity ( q m ) was 1.001 mmol g −1 at 60 °C. The adsorption process onto the composite was thermodynamically feasible and endothermic. Cs adsorption capacity was highest in the pH range of 7 – 8, while the acidic and alkali conditions resulted in the decrease of adsorption ability. To examine the practical applicability, Cs removal test from the simulated wastewater was carried out. KCuHCF KCuHCF–CL composite shows the high selectivity, sufficient capacity and good applicability.