Adsorption Performance of Chitin Hydrogel Particles Toward Congo Red in Aqueous Solution

ABSTRACT With the rapid development of industry, water resources are constantly polluted by toxic dyes. Hence, health concerns associated with organic dyes have received serious attention around the world. In this study, we fabricated chitin hydrogel particles using the sol–gel method. This excellent adsorbent was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and other analysis methods. Subsequently, the removal behaviors and possible mechanisms of action of this adsorbent for Congo red (CR) dye were systematically investigated. Batch adsorption experiments revealed that the Langmuir isothermal model and pseudo‐second‐order model could describe the adsorption process of the chitin hydrogel particles, and that the saturation adsorption capacity was about 2356.3 mg/g. Chitin hydrogel particles exhibited excellent adsorption capacity toward CR and have industrial application potential for wastewater treatment.