| Equilibrium aqueous phase adsorption of phenol, trichloroethene (TCE), chloroform, tetrachloroethene (PCE), and dichloromethane was investigated in order to: (a) evaluate the affinity of different solutes for polymeric resins of polystyrene, polymethacrylate, and polyvinylpyridine; (b) study competitive adsorption effects on polymeric resins; and (c) develop a screening tool for determining the suitability of polymers for development into new macroporous resins.; Single-solute equilibrium adsorption isotherms were expressed in terms of adsorption potential and fugacity of the solute in solution to determine the affinity of the solute for the different polymeric resins. In terms of adsorption potential, the solute isotherms for the polystyrene resins displayed negligible preference for any given solute. In contrast, the more polar resins polymethacrylate and polyvinylpyridine displayed greater selectivity among the solutes. In terms of fugacity of the solute, phenol had the greatest affinity among the solutes studied toward all of the polymeric resins while the chlorinated organics displayed very similar affinities for the polystyrene resins, but again showed greater separation of the adsorption isotherms on the more polar resins.; Polymer-solute affinity was also studied using a novel polymer/silica resin, which was made via free-radical polymerization, and adsorption studies with TCE, PCE, chloroform, and phenol revealed that the Hildebrand solubility parameter and the dipole moments of the solute and polymer can be used as guides for choosing an appropriate polymer to selectively remove contaminants from water.; Competitive adsorption of TCE, chloroform, and PCE was investigated for three commercial polymeric resins by studying the three possible bisolute combinations of these compounds. Competitive adsorption results were compared to the Ideal Adsorbed Solution (IAS) Theory and to the single-solute isotherms themselves. Adsorption of TCE and CHCl{dollar}sb3{dollar} from a bisolute mixture resulted in enhanced adsorption of the greater-adsorbing solute TCE, corresponding to a large negative deviation from "Raoult's Law" for adsorption. Such enhanced adsorption has never been observed in competitive adsorption systems using activated carbon. |
