Low temperature synthesis of MCM-48 and its adsorbent capacity for the removal of basic red 29 dye from model solutions

The low temperature synthesis of MCM-48 was performed and its adsorptive properties were investigated for the first time in literature by studying Basic Red 29 (BR29) dye adsorption from model solutions. The modification of the surface properties and pore structure of silica-based material MCM-48 induced by BR29 adsorption were characterized using XRD, nitrogen physisorption, and SEM methods before and after dye adsorption. The effects of contact time, solution pH, dye concentration, and temperature on the adsorption capacity of MCM-48 were investigated. Different adsorption models and different kinetic models were used, respectively to define the equilibrium data and the kinetics of adsorption. Adsorption data was seen to fit the Langmuir isotherm and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. In addition, MCM-48 was found to be very successful for the removal of the BR29 dye model solutions, even at an initial dye concentration of 500 mg/L for which the removal efficiency was above 97%.