Amidoximated poly(vinyl imidazole)-functionalized molybdenum disulfide sheets for efficient sorption of a uranyl tricarbonate complex from aqueous solutions

Abstract

It is of strategic importance to capture uranium(vi) from aqueous solutions from the points of environment and energy. A new method is reported herein for efficient uranium(vi) capture from aqueous solutions by amidoximated poly(vinyl imidazole)-functionalized MoS2 sheets. Specifically, the sorbent is prepared by grafting amidoximated poly(vinyl imidazole) onto MoS2-sheets through covalent bonds. The sorption follows pseudo-second-order kinetics and the equilibrium can be reached within 30 s. There is a large sorption capacity of 348.4 mg g−1 at pH 8.0 and 298.15 K. The sorbent shows good selectivity towards uranium(vi) over the coexisting ions in comparison with bare MoS2-sheets. In addition, the sorbent exhibits remarkable salt-resistant stability and can be regenerated efficiently after five cycles with high cycle efficiency. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on MoS2 sheets for uranium(vi) sorption with high efficiency from aqueous solution.