U(VI) Adsorption onto Low Dose Radiation Acclimated Tradescantia Fluminensis

The plants that long-term grown in radiation area could be acclimated by low dose radiation (LDR). In this paper, LDR acclimated Tradescantia fluminensi s (Commelinaceae) was first collected as a biomass adsorbent towards uranium adsorption. Comparative experiments verified the potential radiation effects of LDR acclimation, moreover, q e values of the wild and LDR acclimated Tradescantia fluminensis were ~16 mg/g and 20 mg/g, respectively. U(VI) adsorption amount gradually reached equilibrium after 180 min shaking, and the adsorption process described well by the pseudo-second-order model. However, ionic strength has no obvious effect on the q e values. SEM and TG-DSC suggested good structural stability of LDR acclimated Tradescantia fluminensis during the U(VI) adsorption process. FTIR and XPS verfied the surface coordination of U(VI) via -OH and -COOH groups on LDR acclimated Tradescantia fluminensis surface, and the increasing amounts of the two groups could account for the improved U(VI) adsorption capacity compared to the wild Tradescantia fluminensis. Our present work can indicate that LDR acclimation could be a novel way to obtain biomass adsorbents for U(VI) removal from aqueous solutions.