Competitive removal of heavy metal ions from squid oil under isothermal condition by CR11 chelate ion exchanger

Heavy metal ions (HMIs) are serious threats to the environment. Sub-critical water treatment was used to mimic contamination of squid oil in aqueous, metal-soap and oil phases. Isothermal adsorption of HMIs (Cu2+, Pb2+, Cd2+ and Zn2+) was studied from aqueous phase to oil phase (493, 523, 548, and 573K) for solutions with different initial concentration of HMIs was studied. Decomposition of glycerides into fatty acids was favored at high subcritical temperatures, with metal-soap phase showing the highest chelation ability toward Cu2+ (96%, isotherm 573K). The removal-ability of HMIs from contaminated oil was performed by CR11 chelate ion exchanger, showing facilitated removal from metal-soap and oil phases at low temperatures compared to general-purpose PEI-chitosan bead and PEI-chitosan fiber sorbents. The chelation behavior of Pb2+ and Cd2+ was the same in the OIL, with maximum values of 5.7×10−3 (mol/l) and 5.0×10−3 (mol/l) at 573K, respectively. By contrast, concentration of Zn2+ ion showed a slight increase with increasing temperature due to electrostatic forces between Zn2+ and active sites of glycerides in oil phase. For oil solution, the selectivity of adsorption for CR11, especially for Zn2+, was at least five-fold larger compared to PEI-chitosan bead and PEI-chitosan fiber adsorbents.