Adsorption of graphene for the removal of inorganic pollutants in water purification: a review

Abollino, O., Aceto, M., Malandrino, M., Sarzanini, C., Mentasti, E.: Adsorption of heavy metals on Na-montmorillonite effect of pH and organic substances. Water Res. 37, 1619–1627 (2003)

Atia, A.A., Donia, A.M., Abou-El-Enein, S.A., Yousif, A.M.: Studies on uptake behavior of copper(II) and lead(II) by amine chelating resins with different textural properties. Sep. Purif. Technol. 33, 295–301 (2003)

Avouris, P., Dimitrakopoulos, C.: Graphene: synthesis and application. Mater. Today 15, 86–97 (2012)

Babel, S., Kurniawan, T.G.: Low-cost adsorbents for heavy metals uptake from contaminated water: a review. J. Hazard. Mater. 97, 219–243 (2003)

Bai, S., Shen, X.P.: Graphene-inorganic nanocomposites. RSC Adv. 2, 64–98 (2012)

Bi, H.C., Xie, X., Yin, K.B., Zhou, Y.L., Wan, S., He, L.B., Xu, F., Banhart, F., Sun, L.T., Ruoff, R.S.: Spongy graphene as a highly efficient and recyclable sorbent for oils and organic solvents. Adv. Funct. Mater. 22, 4421–4425 (2012)

Cai, J.H., Jia, C.Q.: Mercury removal from aqueous solution using coke-derived sulfur-impregnated activated carbons. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 49, 2716–2721 (2010)

Chandra, C., Kim, K.S.: Highly selective adsorption of Hg2+ by a polypyrrole-reduced graphene oxide composite. Chem. Commun. 47, 3942–3944 (2011)

Chandra, V., Park, J., Chun, Y., Lee, J.W., Hwang, I.C., Kim, K.S.: Water dispersible magnetite-reduced graphene oxide composites for arsenic removal. ACS Nano 4, 3979–3986 (2010)

Chang, Q.G., Lin, W., Ying, W.Z.: Preparation of iron-impregnated granular activated carbon for arsenic removal from drinking water. J. Hazard. Mater. 184, 515–522 (2010)

Chen, A.H., Liu, S.C., Chen, C.Y., Chen, C.Y.: Comparative adsorption of Cu(II), Zn(II), and Pb(II) ions in aqueous solution on the crosslinked chitosan with epichlorohydrin. J. Hazard. Mater. 154, 184–191 (2008)

Cullen, W.R., Reimer, K.J.: Arsenic speciation in the environment. Chem. Rev. 89, 713–764 (1989)

Dabrowski, A., Hubicki, Z., Podkościelny, P., Robens, E.: Selective removal of the heavy metal ions from waters and industrial wastewaters by ion-exchange method. Chemosphere 56, 91–106 (2004)

Debabrata, N., Kaushik, G., Ghosh, A.K., Amitabha, D., Sangam, B., Ghosh, U.C.: Manganese-incorporated iron(III) oxide-graphene magnetic nanocomposite: synthesis, characterization, and application for the arsenic(III)-sorption from aqueous solution. J. Nanopart. Res. 14, 1272 (2012)

Deng, X.J., Lu, L.L., Li, H.W., Luo, F.: The adsorption properties of Pb(II) and Cd(II) on functionalized graphene prepared by electrolysis method. J. Hazard. Mater. 183, 923–930 (2010)

Dreyer, D.R., Park, S., Bielawski, C.W., Ruoff, R.S.: The chemistry of graphene oxide. Chem. Soc. Rev. 39, 228–240 (2010)

Edwards, R.S., Coleman, K.S.: Graphene synthesis: relationship to applications. Nanoscale 5, 38–51 (2013)

Fan, L.L., Luo, C.N., Sun, M., Li, X.J., Qiu, H.M.: Highly selective adsorption of lead ions by water-dispersible magnetic chitosan/graphene oxide composites. Colloids Surf. B 103, 523–529 (2013)

Fan, Z.J., Kai, W., Yan, J.Y., Wei, T.W., Zhi, L.J., Feng, J., Ren, Y.M., Song, L.P., Wei, F.: Facile synthesis of graphene nanosheets via Fe reduction of exfoliated graphite oxide. ACS Nano 5, 191–198 (2011)

Fu, F.L., Wang, Q.: Removal of heavy metal ions from wastewaters: a review. J. Environ. Manag. 92, 407–418 (2011)

Gao, Y., Li, Y., Zhang, L., Huang, H., Hua, J.J., Shah, S.M., Su, X.G.: Adsorption and removal of tetracycline antibiotics from aqueous solution by graphene oxide. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 368, 540–546 (2012)

Geim, A.K.: Graphene: status and prospects. Science 324, 1530–1534 (2009)

Gupta, S.S., Sreeprasad, T.S., Maliyekkal, S.M., Das, S.K., Pradeep, T.: Graphene from sugar and its application in water purification. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 4, 4156–4163 (2012)

Hao, L.Y., Song, H.J., Zhang, L.C., Wan, X.Y., Tang, Y.R., Lv, Y.: SiO2/graphene composite for highly selective adsorption of Pb(II) ion. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 369, 381–387 (2012)

He, Y.Q., Zhang, N.N., Wang, X.D.: Adsorption of graphene oxide/chitosan porous materials for metal ions. Chin. Chem. Lett. 22, 859–862 (2011)

Hu, J., Chen, G.H., Lo, I.M.C.: Removal and recovery of Cr(VI) from wastewater by maghemite nanoparticles. Water Res. 39, 4528–4536 (2005)

Hu, J.S., Zhong, L.S., Song, W.G., Wan, L.J.: Synthesis of hierarchically structured metal oxides and their application in heavy metal ion removal. Adv. Mater. 20, 2977–2982 (2008)

Huang, Z.H., Zheng, X.Y., Lv, W., Wang, M., Yang, Q.H., Kang, F.Y.: Adsorption of lead(II) ions from aqueous solution on low-temperature exfoliated graphene nanosheets. Langmuir 27, 7558–7562 (2011)

Imamoglu, M., Tekir, O.: Removal of copper(II) and lead(II) ions from aqueous solutions by adsorption on activated carbon from a new precursor hazelnut husks. Desalination 228, 108–113 (2008)

Jabeen, H., Chandra, V., Jung, S., Lee, J.W., Kim, K.S., Kim, S.B.: Enhanced Cr(VI) removal using iron nanoparticle decorated graphene. Nanoscale 3, 3583–3585 (2011)

Jolivet, J.P., Chaneac, C., Tronc, E.: Iron Oxide Chemistry. From molecular clusters to extended solid networks. Chem. Commun. 5, 481–483 (2004)

Jonas, B., Felix, H., Carlos-Andres, P., Paolo, S., Marco, C., Mats, P.: Adsorption of aromatic and anti-Aromatic systems on graphene through π-π stacking. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 1, 3407–3412 (2010)

Karbassi, A.R., Nadjafpour, S.: Flocculation of dissolved Pb, Cu, Zn and Mn during estuarine mixing of river water with the Caspian Sea. Environ. Pollut. 93, 257–260 (1996)

Khan, Z., Kumar, P., Kabir, D.: Kinetics of the reduction of water-soluble colloidal MnO2 by ascorbic acid. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 290, 184–189 (2005)

Kharisov, B.I., Rasika-Dias, H.V., Kharissova, O.V., Jimenez-Perez, V.M., Pe´reza, B.O., Flores, B.M.: Iron-containing nanomaterials: synthesis, properties, and environmental applications. RSC Adv 2(25), 9325–9358 (2012)

Kuilla, T., Bhadra, S., Yao, D.H., Kim, N.H., Bose, S., Lee, J.H.: Recent advances in graphene based polymer composites. Prog. Polym. Sci. 35(11), 1350–1375 (2010)

Kuo, C.Y.: Water purification of removal aqueous copper(II) by as-grown and modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes. Desalination 249(2), 781–785 (2009)

Lee, H., Ihm, J., Cohen, M.L., Louie, S.G.: Calcium-decorated graphene-based nanostructures for hydrogen storage. Nano Lett. 10(3), 793–798 (2010)

Lee, Y.C., Yang, J.W.: Self-assembled flower-like TiO2 on exfoliated graphite oxide for heavy metal removal. J. Ind. Eng. Chem. 18(3), 1178–1185 (2012)

Leenaerts, O., Partoens, B., Peeters, F.M.: Adsorption of H2O, NH3, CO, NO2, and NO on graphene: a first-principles study. Phys. Rev. B 77(12), 125416 (2008)

Lenoble, V., Laclautre, C., Deluchat, V., Serpaud, B., Bollinger, J.C.: Arsenic removal by adsorption on iron(III) phosphate. J. Hazard. Mater. 123(1), 262–268 (2005)

Li, J., Chen, S., Sheng, G., Hu, J., Tan, X., Wang, X.: Effect of surfactants on Pb(II) adsorption from aqueous solutions using oxidized multiwall carbon nanotubes. Chem. Eng. Sci. 166(2), 551–558 (2011a)

Li, N.W., Zheng, M.B., Chang, X.F., Ji, G.B., Lu, H.L., Xue, L.P., Pan, L.J., Cao, J.M.: Preparation ofmagnetic CoFe2O4-functionalized graphene sheets via a facile hydrothermal method and their adsorption properties. J. Solid State Chem. 184(4), 953–958 (2011b)

Li, X., Cao, J., Zhang, W.: Stoichiometry of Cr(VI) Immobilization Using Nanoscale Zerovalent Iron (nZVI): a Study with High-Resolution X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (HR-XPS). Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 47(7), 2131–2139 (2008)

Li, Y.H., Zhang, P., Du, Q.J., Peng, X.J., Liu, T.H., Wang, Z.H., Xia, Y.Z., Zhang, W., Wang, K.L., Zhu, H.W., Wu, D.H.: Adsorption of fluoride from aqueous solution by graphene. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 363(1), 348–354 (2011c)

Liu, L., Li, C., Bao, C.L., Jia, Q., Xiao, P.F., Liu, X.T., Zhang, Q.P.: Preparation and characterization of chitosan/graphene oxide composites for the adsorption of Au(III) and Pd(II). Talanta 93, 350–357 (2012a)

Liu, L., Liu, S.X., Zhang, Q.P., Li, C., Bao, C.L., Liu, X.T., Xiao, P.F.: Adsorption of Au(III), Pd(II), and Pt(IV) from aqueous solution onto graphene oxide. J. Chem. Eng. Data 58(2), 209–216 (2013)

Liu, M.C., Chen, C.L., Hu, J., Wu, X.L., Wang, X.K.: Synthesis of Magnetite/Graphene Oxide Composite and Application for Cobalt(II) Removal. J. Phys. Chem. C 115, 25234–25240 (2011a)

Liu, S.S., Chen, Y.Z., De, Z.L., Hua, G.M., Xu, W., Li, N., Zhang, Y.: Enhanced removal of trace Cr(VI) ions from aqueous solution by titanium oxide–Ag composite adsorbents. J. Hazard. Mater. 190(1), 723–728 (2011b)

Liu, T.H., Li, Y.H., Du, Q.J., Sun, J.K., Jiao, Y.Q., Yang, G.M., Wang, Z.H., Xia, Y.Z., Zhang, W., Wang, K.L., Zhu, H.W., Wu, D.H.: Adsorption of methylene blue from aqueous solution by graphene. Colloids Surf. B 90, 197–203 (2012b)

Lopez-Valdivieso, A., Reyes-Bahena, J.L., Song, S., Herrera-Urbina, R.: Temperature effect on the zeta potential and fluoride adsorption at the α-Al2O3/aqueous solution interface. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 298(1), 1–5 (2006)

Loukidou, M.X., Matis, K.A., Zouboulis, A.I., Liakopoulou-Kyriakidou, M.: Removal of As (V) from wastewaters by chemically modified fungal biomass. Water Res. 37(18), 4544–4552 (2003)

Ma, H.L., Zhang, Y.W., Hu, Q.H., Yan, D., Yu, Z.Z., Zhai, M.L.: Chemical reduction and removal of Cr(VI) from acidic aqueous solution by ethylenediamine-reduced graphene oxide. J. Mater. Chem. 22(13), 5914–5916 (2012)

Madadrang, C.J., Kim, H.Y., Gao, G.H., Wang, N., Zhu, J., Feng, H., Gorring, M., Kasner, M.L., Hou, S.F.: Adsorption behavior of EDTA-Graphene oxide for Pb(II) removal. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 4(3), 1186–1193 (2012)

Makrlik, E., Vanura, P.: Solvent extraction of lead using a nitrobenzene solution of strontium dicarbollylcobaltate in the presence of polyethylene glycol PEG 400. J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem. 267(1), 233–235 (2005)

Maliyekkal, S.M., Sreeprasad, T.S., Krishnan, D., Kouser, S., Mishra, A.K., Waghmare, U.V., Pradeep, T.: Graphene: a reusable substrate for unprecedented adsorption of pesticides. Small 9(2), 273–283 (2013)

Matlock, M.M., Howerton, B.S., Atwood, D.A.: Chemical precipitation of lead from lead battery recycling plant wastewater. Ind. Eng. Chem. Res. 41(6), 1579–1582 (2002)

Mauter, M., Elimelech, M.: Environmental applications of carbon-based nanomaterials. Environ. Sci. Technol. 42(16), 5843–5859 (2008)

Mi, X., Huang, G.B., Xie, W.S., Wang, W., Liu, Y., Gao, J.P.: Preparation of graphene oxide aerogel and its adsorption for Cu2+ ions. Carbon 50(13), 4856–4864 (2012)

Mishra, A.K., Ramaprabhu, M.S.: Functionalized graphene sheets for arsenic removal and desalination of sea water. Desalination 282, 39–45 (2011)

Mohan, D., Pittman, C.U.: Arsenic removal from water/wastewater using adsorbents-a critical review. J. Hazard. Mater. 142(1), 1–53 (2007)

Moreno-Castilla, C., Alvarez-Merino, M.A., Pastrana-Martínez, L.M., López-Ramón, M.V.: Adsorption mechanisms of metal cations from water on an oxidized carbon surface. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 345(2), 461–466 (2010)

Ngah, W.S.W., Ghani, S.A., Kamari, A.: Adsorption behaviour of Fe(II) and Fe(III) ions in aqueous solution on chitosan and cross-linked chitosan beads. Bioresour. Technol. 96(4), 443–450 (2005)

Ofomaja, A.E., Naidoo, E.B., Modise, S.J.: Biosorption of copper(II) and lead(II) onto potassium hydroxide treated pine cone powder. J. Environ. Manag. 91(8), 1674–1685 (2010)

Oliveira, L.C.A., Petkowicz, D.I., Smaniotto, A., Pergher, S.B.C.: Magnetic zeolites: a new adsorbent for removal of metallic contaminants from water. Water Res. 38(17), 3699–3704 (2004)

Park, S., An, J.H., Jung, I.W., Piner, R.D., An, S.J., Li, X.S., Velamakanni, A., Ruoff, R.S.: Colloidal suspensions of highly reduced graphene oxide in a wide variety of organic solvents. Nano Lett. 9(4), 1593–1597 (2009)

Petosa, A.R., Jaisi, D.P., Quevedo, I.R., Elimelech, M., Tufenkji, N.: Aggregation and deposition of engineered nanomaterials in aquatic environments: role of physicochemical interactions. Environ. Sci. Technol. 44(17), 6532–6549 (2010)

Pontius, F.W., Brown, K.G., Chen, C.J.: Health implications of arsenic in drinking water. J. Am. Water Works Assoc. 86(9), 52–63 (1994)

Prashant, V.K.: Graphene-Based Nanoarchitectures: anchoring semiconductor and metal nanoparticles on a two-dimensional carbon support. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 1(2), 520–527 (2010)

Pyrzynska, K., Bystrzejewski, M.: Comparative study of heavy metal ions sorption onto activated carbon, carbon nanotubes, and carbon-encapsulated magnetic nanoparticles. Colloids Surf. A 362(1), 102–109 (2010)

Ramesha, G.K., Vijaya, K.A., Muralidhara, H.B., Sampath, S.: Graphene and graphene oxide as effective adsorbents toward anionic and cationic dyes. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 361(1), 270–277 (2011)

Rao, C.N.R., Sood, A.K., Subrahmanyam, K.S., Govindaraj, A.: Graphene: the new two-dimensional nanomaterial. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 48(42), 7752–7777 (2009a)

Rao, G.P., Lu, C., Su, F.: Sorption of divalent metal ions from aqueous solution by carbon nanotubes: a review. Sep. Purif. Technol. 58(1), 224–231 (2007)

Rao, M.M., Ramana, D.K., Seshaiah, K., Wang, M.C., Chien, S.W.C.: Removal of some metal ions by activated carbon prepared from Phaseolus aureus hulls. J. Hazard. Mater. 166(2), 1006–1013 (2009b)

Ren, X.M., Chen, C.L., Nagatsu, M., Wang, X.K.: Carbon nanotubes as adsorbents in environmental pollution management: a review. Chem. Eng. J. 170(2), 395–410 (2011a)

Ren, Y.M., Yan, N., Wen, Q., Fan, Z.J., Wei, T., Zhang, M.L., Ma, J.: Graphene/δ-MnO2 composite as adsorbent for the removal of nickel ions from wastewater. Chem. Eng. J. 175, 1–7 (2011b)

Reyes-Bahena, J.L., Robledo-Cabrera, A., Lopez-Valdivieso, A., Herrera-Urbina, R.: Fluoride adsorption onto α-Al2O3 and its effect on the zeta potential at the alumina-aqueous electrolyte interface. Sep. Sci. Technol. 37(8), 1973–1987 (2002)

Rivera-Utrilla, J., Sanchez-Polo, M.: Adsorption of Cr(III) on ozonised activated carbon. Importance of C π-cation interactions. Water Res. 37, 3335–3340 (2003)

Robinson, T., Chandran, B., Nigam, P.: Removal of dyes from a synthetic textile dye effluent by biosorption on apple pomace and wheat straw. Water Res. 36(11), 2824–2830 (2002)

Rodrigues, L.A., Maschio, L.J., Silva, R.E., Silva, M.L.C.: Adsorption of Cr(VI) from aqueous solution by hydrous zirconium oxide. J. Hazard. Mater. 173(1), 630–636 (2010)

Romero, H.E., Joshi, P., Gupta, A.K., Gutierrez, H.R., Cole, M.W., Tadigadapa, S.A., Eklund, P.C.: Adsorption of ammonia on graphene. Nanotechnology 20(24), 245501 (2009)

Rude, P.D., Aller, R.C.: The influence of Mg2+ on the adsorption of fluoride by hydrous oxides in seawater. Am. J. Sci. 293, 1–24 (1993)

Ruparelia, J.P., Duttagupta, S.P., Chatterjee, A.K., Mukherji, S.: Potential of carbon nanomaterials for removal of heavy metals from water. Desalination 232(1), 145–156 (2008)

Sanchez-Polo, M., Rivera-Utrilla, J.: Adsorbent-adsorbate interactions in the adsorption of Cd(II) and Hg(II) on ozonized activated carbons. Environ. Sci. Technol. 36(17), 3850–3854 (2002)

Sheng, G.D., Li, Y.M., Yang, X., Ren, X.M., Yang, S.T., Hu, J., Wang, X.K.: Efficient removal of arsenate by versatile magnetic graphene oxide composites. RSC Adv. 2(32), 12400–12407 (2012)

Shin, S., Jang, J.: Thiol containing polymer encapsulated magnetic nanoparticles as reusable and efficiently separable adsorbent for heavy metal ions. Chem. Commun. 41, 4230–4232 (2007)

Song, H., Zhang, L., He, C., Qu, Y., Tian, Y., Lv, Y.: Graphene sheets decorated with SnO2 nanoparticles: in situ synthesis and highly efficient materials for cataluminescence gas sensors. J. Mater. Chem. 21(16), 5972–5977 (2011)

Soylak, M., Unsal, Y.E., Kizil, N., Aydin, A.: Utilization of membrane filtration for preconcentration and determination of Cu(II) and Pb(II) in food, water and geological samples by atomic absorption spectrometry. Food Chem. Toxicol. 48(2), 517–521 (2010)

Sreeprasad, T.S., Maliyekkal, S.M., Lisha, K.P., Pradeep, T.J.: Reduced graphene oxide-metal/metal oxide composites: facile synthesis and application in water purification. J. Hazard. Mater. 186(1), 921–923 (2011)

Stafiej, A., Pyrzynska, K.: Adsorption of heavy metal ions with carbon nanotubes. Sep. Purif. Technol. 58(1), 49–52 (2008)

Tawabini, B., Al-Khaldi, S., Atieh, M., Khaled, M.: Removal of mercury from water by multi-walled carbon nanotubes. Water Sci. Technol. 61, 591–598 (2010)

Wang, J., Deng, B.L., Chen, H., Wang, X.R., Zheng, J.Z.: Removal of aqueous Hg(II) by polyaniline: sorption characteristics and mechanisms. Environ. Sci. Technol. 43(14), 5223–5228 (2009)

Wang, J.L., Shi, Z.X., Fan, J.C., Ge, Y., Yin, J., Hu, G.X.: Self-assembly of graphene into three-dimensional structures promoted by natural phenolilc acids. J. Mater. Chem. 22(42), 22459–22466 (2012)

Wen, T., Wu, X.L., Tan, X.L., Wang, X.K., Xu, A.W.: One-pot synthesis of water-swellable Mg − Al layered double hydroxides and graphene oxide nanocomposites for efficient removal of As (V) from aqueous solutions. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 5(8), 3304–3311 (2013)

Williams, G., Seger, B., Kamat, P.V.: TiO2-Graphene nanocomposites. UV-assisted photocatalytic reduction of graphene oxide. ACS Nano 2(7), 1487–1491 (2008)

Wu, Q.H., Zhao, G.Y., Feng, C., Wang, C., Wang, Z.: Preparation of a graphene-based magnetic nanocomposite for the extraction of carbamate pesticides from environmental water samples. J. Chromatogr. A 1218(44), 7936–7942 (2011a)

Wu, T., Cai, X., Tan, S.Z., Li, H.Y., Liu, J.S., Yang, W.D.: Adsorption characteristics of acrylonitrile, p-toluenesulfonic acid, 1-naphthalenesulfonic acid and methyl blue on graphene in aqueous solutions. Chem. Eng. J. 173(1), 144–149 (2011b)

Wu, W.Q., Yang, Y., Zhou, H.H., Ye, T.T., Huang, Z.Y., Liu, R., Kuang, Y.F.: Highly efficient removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solution by using Graphene oxide. Water Air Soil Pollut. 224(1), 1372 (2013a)

Wu, X.L., Wang, L., Chen, C.L., Xu, A.W., Wang, X.K.: Water-dispersible magnetite-graphene-LDH composites for efficient arsenate removal. J. Mater. Chem. 21(43), 17353–17359 (2011c)

Wu, Y., Luo, H.J., Wang, H., Wang, C., Zhang, J., Zhang, Z.L.: Adsorption of hexavalent chromium from aqueous solutions by graphene modified with cetyltrimethylammonium bromide. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 394, 183–191 (2013b)

Xiang, Q.J., Yu, J.G., Jaronie, M.: Graphene-based semiconductor photocatalysts. Chem. Soc. Rev. 41(2), 782–796 (2012)

Yang, S.T., Chang, Y.L., Wang, H.F., Liu, G.B., Chen, S., Wang, Y.W., Liu, Y.F., Cao, A.: Folding/aggregation of graphene oxide and its application in Cu2+ removal. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 351(1), 122–127 (2010)

Yang, X., Chen, C.L., Li, J.X., Zhao, G.X., Ren, X.M., Wang, X.K.: Graphene oxide-iron oxide and reduced graphene oxide-iron oxide hybrid materials for the removal of organic and inorganic pollutants. RSC Adv. 2(23), 8821–8826 (2012)

Yao, Y.J., Miao, S.D., Liu, S.Z., Ma, L.P., Sun, H.Q., Wang, S.B.: Synthesis, characterization, and adsorption properties of magnetic Fe3O4@graphene nanocomposite. Chem. Eng. J. 184, 326–332 (2012)

Zhang, G.S., Qu, J.H., Liu, H.J., Liu, R.P., Li, G.T.: Removal mechanism of As(III) by a novel Fe-Mn binary oxide adsorbent: oxidation and sorption. Environ. Sci. Technol. 41(13), 4613–4619 (2007)

Zhang, K., Dwivedi, V., Chi, C.Y., Wu, J.S.: Graphene oxide/ferric hydroxide composites for efficient arsenate removal from drinking water. J. Hazard. Mater. 182(1), 162–168 (2010a)

Zhang, N.N., Qiu, H.X., Si, Y.M., Wang, W., Gao, J.P.: Fabrication of highly porous biodegradable monoliths strengthened by graphene oxide and their adsorption of metal ions. Carbon 49(3), 827–837 (2011)

Zhang, T., Cheng, Z.G., Wang, Y.B., Li, Z.J., Wang, C.X., Li, Y.B., Fang, Y.: Self-assembled 1-Octadecanethiol monolayers on graphene for mercury detection. Nano Lett. 10(11), 4738–4741 (2010b)

Zhang, W.X.: Nanoscale iron particles for environmental remediation: an overview. J. Nanopart. Res. 5(3–4), 323–332 (2003)

Zhang, X., Cheng, C., Zhao, J., Ma, L., Sun, S.D., Zhao, C.S.: Polyethersulfone enwrapped graphene oxide porous particles for water treatment. Chem. Eng. J. 215–216, 72–81 (2013a)

Zhang, Y.W., Ma, H.L., Peng, J., Zhai, M.L., Yu, Z.Z.: Cr(VI) removal from aqueous solution using chemically reduced and functionalized graphene oxide. J. Mater. Sci. 48(5), 1883–1889 (2013b)

Zhao, G.X., Li, J.X., Wang, X.K.: Kinetic and thermodynamic study of 1-naphthol adsorption from aqueous solution to sulfonated graphene nanosheets. Chem. Eng. J. 173(1), 185–190 (2011a)

Zhao, G.X., Jiang, L., He, Y.D., Li, J.X., Dong, H.L., Wang, X.K., Hu, W.P.: Sulfonated graphene for persistent aromatic pollutant management. Adv. Mater. 23(34), 3959–3963 (2011b)

Zhao, G.X., Ren, X.M., Gao, X., Tan, X.L., Li, J.X., Chen, C.L., Huang, Y.Y., Wang, X.K.: Removal of Pb(II) ions from aqueous solutions on few-layered graphene oxide nanosheets. Dalton Trans. 40(41), 10945–10952 (2011c)

Zhao, J.P., Ren, W.C., Cheng, H.M.: Graphene sponge for efficient and repeatable adsorption and desorption of water contaminations. J. Mater. Chem. 22(38), 20197–20202 (2012)

Zhao, Y.F., He, S., Wei, M., Evans, D.G., Duan, X.: Hierarchical films of layered double hydroxides by using a sol-gel process and their high adaptability in water treatment. Chem. Commun. 46(17), 3031–3033 (2010)

Zhu, H., Jia, Y., Wu, X., Wang, H.: Removal of arsenic from water by supported nano zero-valent iron on activated carbon. J. Hazard. Mater. 172(2), 1591–1596 (2009a)

Zhu, J., Yang, J., Deng, B.: Enhanced mercury ion adsorption by amine-modified activated carbon. J. Hazard. Mater. 166(2), 866–872 (2009b)

Zhu, J.H., Wei, S.Y., Gu, H.B., Rapole, S.B., Wang, Q., Luo, Z.P., Haldolaarachchige, N., Young, D.P., Guo, Z.H.: One-pot synthesis of magnetic graphene nanocomposites decorated with core@double-shell nanoparticles for fast chromium removal. Environ. Sci. Technol. 46(2), 977–985 (2012)

Zhu, Y.W., Murali, S., Cai, W.W., Li, X.S., Suk, J.W., Potts, J.R., Ruoff, R.S.: Graphene and graphene oxide: synthesis, properties, and applications. Adv. Mater. 22(35), 3906–3924 (2010)