Polymer monoliths with chelating functionalities for solid phase extraction of metal ions from water.

Simple devices for the adsorption and preconcentration of metal ions comprising various monolithic polymers have been prepared by in situ polymerization within the 5.5cm long and 5.6mm i.d. polypropylene syringes. Poly(glycidyl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) monolith was modified with ethylenediamine to obtain the chelating material. The poly(butyl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) and poly(lauryl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) monoliths were first photografted with glycidyl methacrylate prior to functionalization with ethylenediamine. Alternatively, other chelating functionalities including poly(ethylene imines) varying in molecular weight and shape (linear and branched) as well as lysozyme were also attached to the monolithic supports. We found that the poly(glycidyl methacrylate-co-ethylene dimethacrylate) monolith functionalized with ethylenediamine exhibited the best chelating properties characterized with rapid adsorption and a capacity of 111.2mg/g (537μmol/g) for Pb(2+), 38.1mg/g (649μmol/g) for Ni(2+), 69.9mg/g (1100μmol/g) for Cu(2+), and 188.9mg/g (3633μmol/g) for Cr(3+). The very fast desorption was then achieved using 1.0mol/L HNO3 as the eluent. An enrichment factor of 300 was observed for metal ions adsorbed from solutions containing 2ppb of the metal.