Construction of 3D-Printed Sodium Alginate/Chitosan/Halloysite Nanotube Composites as Adsorbents of Methylene Blue

Abstract

In this study, sodium alginate/chitosan/halloysite nanotube composites were prepared by three-dimensional printing and characterized in terms of morphology, viscosity, thermal properties, and methylene blue (MB) adsorption performance. The high specific surface area and extensively microporous structure of these composites allowed for effective MB removal from wastewater; specifically, a removal efficiency of 80% was obtained after a 60 min treatment at an adsorbent loading of 1 g L−1 and an MB concentration of 80 mg L−1, while the maximum MB adsorption capacity equaled 376.3 mg g−1. Adsorption kinetics and isotherms were well described by quasi-second-order and Langmuir models, respectively. The composites largely retained their adsorption performance after five adsorption–desorption cycles and were concluded to hold great promise for MB removal from wastewater.