REMOVAL OF METHYLENE BLUE DYE FROM WASTEWATER BY ADSORPTION ONTO SEMI-INPENETRATING POLYMER NETWORK HYDROGELS COMPOSED OF ACRYLAMIDE AND ACRYLIC ACID COPOLYMER AND POLYVINYL ALCOHOL

Dye removal from wastewater has received considerable attention with several classes of dye being investigated. Methylene blue has wide applications and can cause some harmful effects in humans. The use of clean technology of low-priced and biodegradable absorbents could be a good tool to minimize the environmental impact caused by dye manufacturing and textile effluents.The present study deals with the preparation of a novel sIPN (semi interpenetrating) hydrogel composed of copolymer of acrylamide and acrylicacid with poly vinyl alcohol as linear polymer there in. The adsorption abilities of hydrogels with different molar ratios for removal of methylene blue from aqueous solutions were investigated. A weighed quantity of dry hybrid hydrogel was immersed in 50 ppm MB solution and kept at 37 oC. The amount of MB adsorbed was measured spectrophotometrically (λ= 661.6 nm) in periodically taken solution samples. The maximum dye adsorption concentration for hydrogel composites was 95% and no dye desorption of MB/polymer solutions was observed. Hence, the composites can be used as good membranes for removal of cationic dyes from aqueous solutions while they do not release harmful materials into water.