Nitrogen-Doped Microporous Carbon Derived from Polyaniline Nanofiber for Removal of 2,4-Dichlorophenol

Abstract

Nitrogen-doped microporous carbon is successfully fabricated through carbonization and KOH activation of polyaniline nanofiber, which is synthesized by dilute polymerization, and could directly provide the nitrogen doping source. Characterization shows that as-prepared sample is successfully doped with nitrogen with a content of 5.9%, and presence of a large amount of micropores render a high specific surface area of 977.9 m2/g to the sample. Capability of removing 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP) from aqueous solution is explored through the bath adsorption experiments by utilizing the nitrogen-doped microporous carbon. The adsorbent manifesting a highest adsorption capacity of 378.8 mg/g is effective in a broad pH range (2.0–10.0) for removal of 2,4-DCP. Besides, the removal ratio of 2,4-DCP can be rapidly achieved to 90% within 10 min. Adsorption isotherm and kinetics data are fitted well with the Freundlich isotherm and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model, respectively. Moreover, nitrogen-doped microporous carbon can be regenerated effectively and recycled by using diluted NaOH. Therefore, implementation of nitrogen-doped microporous carbon with relatively high reusability as an adsorbent is promising for fast and efficient remediation of 2,4-DCP-containing wastewater.