Comparative Analysis of Rhodamine B Adsorption Kinetics and Mechanism on Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide

Comparative Analysis of Rhodamine B Adsorption Kinetics and Mechanism on Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Comparative Analysis of Rhodamine B Adsorption Kinetics and Mechanism on Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide Anshu Tyagi, Bhupendra Chudasama, Amjad Ali This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9177469/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted 6 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study investigates the adsorption behaviour Rhodamine B (RhB), a cationic dye, from aqueous solution onto synthesized graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO). Systematic examinations of various parameters, including pH, contact time, catalyst dosage, and dye concentration, were performed. Graphene oxide was synthesized utilizing the well-established Hummer’s method, while rGO was produced by reducing GO with hydrazine hydrate under ultrasonication. A combination of characterization techniques, including FTIR, XRD, Raman spectroscopy, FE-SEM, and Zeta-potential measurements, was employed to analyze the structural and surface properties of both materials. The findings from the adsorption studies indicated that equilibrium was reached within 6 minutes for both GO and rGO. The optimum dye removal efficiency for GO was observed at pH 4, achieving a remarkable removal percentage of 98.12%, whereas rGO exhibited a 92.86% removal rate at pH 8. Kinetic modelling indicated that the adsorption process followed a pseudo-second-order model, suggesting that chemisorption predominates the mechanism. Isotherm analysis indicated a superior fit with the Langmuir model for both adsorbents, implying monolayer adsorption. GO demonstrated a higher adsorption capacity (19.92 mg/g) compared to rGO (5.186 mg/g), which is attributed to the more significant density of oxygen-containing functional groups present in GO. Reusability studies showed that both adsorbents maintained significant activity over six cycles, with rGO exhibiting enhanced stability. Density functional theory (DFT) calculation further supported the experimental results by confirming the favorable adsorption energy and electronic interactions between RhB molecule and GO/rGO surfaces. Additionally, a phytotoxicity evaluation through seed germination experiments indicated that treated water had minimal harmful effects, thus highlighting its environmental safety for potential repurposing. Graphene oxide Reduced Graphene oxide Rhodamine B adsorption Density functional theory Adsorption kinetics Phytotoxicity Environmental remediation Full Text Supplementary Files SI.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Major Revision 03 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 09 Apr, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 09 Apr, 2026 Editor invited by journal 08 Apr, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 01 Apr, 2026 First submitted to journal 30 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9177469","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":620225592,"identity":"ffec13cf-1995-4d8b-9999-9517c8252982","order_by":0,"name":"Anshu 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Systematic examinations of various parameters, including pH, contact time, catalyst dosage, and dye concentration, were performed. Graphene oxide was synthesized utilizing the well-established Hummer\u0026rsquo;s method, while rGO was produced by reducing GO with hydrazine hydrate under ultrasonication. A combination of characterization techniques, including FTIR, XRD, Raman spectroscopy, FE-SEM, and Zeta-potential measurements, was employed to analyze the structural and surface properties of both materials. The findings from the adsorption studies indicated that equilibrium was reached within 6 minutes for both GO and rGO. The optimum dye removal efficiency for GO was observed at pH 4, achieving a remarkable removal percentage of 98.12%, whereas rGO exhibited a 92.86% removal rate at pH 8. Kinetic modelling indicated that the adsorption process followed a pseudo-second-order model, suggesting that chemisorption predominates the mechanism. Isotherm analysis indicated a superior fit with the Langmuir model for both adsorbents, implying monolayer adsorption. GO demonstrated a higher adsorption capacity (19.92 mg/g) compared to rGO (5.186 mg/g), which is attributed to the more significant density of oxygen-containing functional groups present in GO. Reusability studies showed that both adsorbents maintained significant activity over six cycles, with rGO exhibiting enhanced stability. Density functional theory (DFT) calculation further supported the experimental results by confirming the favorable adsorption energy and electronic interactions between RhB molecule and GO/rGO surfaces. Additionally, a phytotoxicity evaluation through seed germination experiments indicated that treated water had minimal harmful effects, thus highlighting its environmental safety for potential repurposing.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Comparative Analysis of Rhodamine B Adsorption Kinetics and Mechanism on Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-04-17 14:52:08","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9177469/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Major Revision","date":"2026-05-03T16:04:48+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"","date":"2026-04-09T14:10:02+00:00","index":0,"fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-04-09T09:30:28+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvited","content":"Environmental Science and Pollution Research","date":"2026-04-08T13:26:43+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-04-01T04:52:21+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Environmental Science and Pollution Research","date":"2026-03-31T01:55:24+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"environmental-science-and-pollution-research","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"espr","sideBox":"Learn more about [Environmental Science and Pollution Research](https://www.springer.com/journal/11356)","snPcode":"11356","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/11356/3","title":"Environmental Science and Pollution Research","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"126f0822-e913-400d-8360-3a9de0cf1d7f","owner":[],"postedDate":"April 17th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[{"type":"decision","content":"Major Revision","date":"2026-05-03T16:04:48+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"in-revision","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-03T20:05:25+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-04-17 14:52:08","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9177469","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9177469","identity":"rs-9177469","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}