Removal of As(V) Based on Amino-Group Surface-Functionalized Porous Silicon Derived from Photovoltaic Silicon Cutting Powder

In this study, amino group surface-functionalized porous silicon adsorbent was successfully prepared for the first time using diamond wire saw silicon powder (DWSSP) as raw material through copper-assisted chemical etching (Cu-ACE) and organic functional group grafting. Amino-functionalized porous silicon adsorbent (TEPA-GTS-NPSi) can be used for removing As(V) from water. The properties and mechanism of the new adsorbent were characterized by infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller analysis (BET), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The concentration of metal ions in the solution was determined by inductively coupled plasma spectrometry. Meanwhile, the effects of initial pH, adsorption time, initial concentration and adsorbent dosage on the removal of As(V) in an aqueous solution were studied by intermittent adsorption experiments. The results showed that the adsorption equilibrium could be reached rapidly after 30 min soaking. Under the optimized pH of 7, the maximum adsorption capacity was 13.2 mg/g, and the minimum adsorption limit was 3 mg/L. The adsorbent shows good adsorption performance after five successive regenerated cycles. Based on the density functional theory (DFT) analysis results, the adsorption mechanism is attributed to hydrogen bond interaction between the NH2 group and As(V) ions.