PNIPAM-functionalized LDH-La alginate hydrogel beads as a high-capacity and recyclable adsorbent for phosphate capture.

Authors

Jiawei Huang, Feng Chen, Sijing Qi, Congyan Xie, Huajun Liu, Xiaoshuang Yin, Wenzhong Yang, Hui Xu

Published in

Carbohydrate polymers. Volume 389. Pages 125667. Oct 01, 2026. Epub Jul 20, 2026.

Abstract

Phosphate-induced eutrophication has become a severe environmental issue, urging the development of high-performance adsorbents for complex water treatment. A hierarchical porous hydrogel bead LDH-La@PNIPAM/SA was constructed by compositing La³⁺-intercalated layered double hydroxide (LDH) into thermo-responsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)/sodium alginate network. The eggshell-like porous structure and PNIPAM effectively accelerate ion diffusion and overcome mass transfer resistance; La³⁺ confinement in LDH interlayers drastically reduces metal leaching and enables reversible desorption for recyclable use. The adsorbent delivers a maximum phosphate adsorption capacity of 91.35 mg P/g at pH 3, 15 °C with initial P concentration of 100 mg P/L, and shows strong anti-interference ability with 82.3% capacity retention after nine cycles. It keeps effluent phosphate below 0.5 mg P/L for 26.5 h in fixed-bed operation, and achieves >95% phosphate removal from real lake water spiked to 0.5 mg P/L. Inner-sphere La-O-P complexation is the dominant mechanism, combined with electrostatic attraction, ligand exchange and anion exchange. This work provides a stable, reusable and high-efficiency adsorbent for phosphorus wastewater treatment and eutrophication control.

PMID:
42586693
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 13 Aug 2026.

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