Removal of Cesium from Aqueous Solutions by Sodium and Calcium Alginates

Environmental pollution with radioactive materials poses a serious threat to public health. Among radioisotopes, cesium is one of the most dangerous elements which can be found in waste disposals of nuclear plants and similar facilities. In this paper, pure sodium and calcium alginic salts were investigated as adsorbents for removal of cesium ions from aqueous solution. It was found that both polysaccharides form complexes with the metal ions. Batch equilibrium experiments were carried out to study the effect of contact time, initial concentration of the metal and pH of the media on the adsorption of cesium by alginate compounds. The equilibrium time was found to be 60 minutes for adsorption of cesium with various initial metal concentrations. The maximum adsorption capacity of calcium alginate and sodium alginate was found to be 63.69 and 80.64 mg g super( -1), respectively, at pH 6.0. From these results, it is clear that sodium alginate possesses more pronounced cesium binding capacity than calcium alginate.