DYES ADSORPTION BY USING DIFFERENT TYPES OF CHITOSAN FOR DECONTAMINATION OF CLEANING WATERS FROM CHEMICAL CARRIERS

This paper presents a preliminary study of the dyes removal from wastewater using an economic, biodegradable and non-toxic material that has been obtained from two local marine sources. It is known that the marine environment is most affected by the discharge of these contaminants, which are caused by industrial and shipping activities. The contaminants discharging into marine environment through wastewater are considered a source of eutrophic and dangerous pollution with mutagenic and carcinogenic effects. Therefore, in accordance with IMO-MARPOL regulations, it is necessary to find ecofriendly adsorbent materials for using in wastewater decontamination without negative impact on the environment. In this study, samples of chitosan powder obtained by chemical extraction from two local sources (P. elegans and R. venosa egg capsules) were used. The physicochemical characteristics of the biopolymer samples were evaluated in terms of moisture, ash content and solubility in acetic acid solutions, and the structure identification was made using FT-IR spectroscopy. The methylene blue adsorption using different types of chitosan was analysed by UV-vis. measurements of dilute acidic chitosan solutions that were contaminated with small quantities of this dye. The obtained preliminary results indicate the possibility to use chitosan in wastewater and cleaning waters decontamination due to its biodegradable and non-toxic features. It is known that the chemical carriers cleaning mainly is carried out by washing with water, but decontamination process of cleaning waters can be improved by adding the chitosan dilute acidic solutions at certain concentrations.