Double Network Gelatin/Chitosan Hydrogel Effective Removal of Dyes from Aqueous Solutions

Herein, a porous, biodegradable and recyclable Gelatin/Chitosan hydrogel was fabricated as an effective adsorbent for organic pollutant. The synthesized Gelatin/Chitosan hydrogel composite was utilized in the removal of multiple dyes from aqueous solution using batch adsorption experiments. Among them, the Gelatin/Chitosan hydrogel had excellent adsorption capacity for various dyes. The maximum adsorption capacities for crystalline violet, methyl orange, acid fuchsin, congo red, malachite green, and methylene blue were 233.4 mg/g, 294.1 mg/g, 454.5 mg/g, 221.2 mg/g, 186.7 mg/g, and 209.2 mg/g, respectively. Moreover, the adsorption process could be well described by the Langmuir isotherm model and pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The dye removal efficiency was still more than 50% after five consecutive cycles of dye adsorption–desorption. Therefore, the Gelatin/Chitosan hydrogel composite is a potential candidate towards dye pollution remediation owing to its environment friendliness, high adsorption potential and regeneration capability.