Mesoporous Zirconium Phosphonate Hybrid Material as Adsorbent to Heavy Metal Ions

A new kind of inorganic–organic hybrid zirconium phosphonate material (NTAZP) with mesoporous structure was synthesized using nitrilotris(methylene)-triphosphonic acid (ATMP) and zirconium dichloride oxide octahydrate. The sample possesses a spherical morphology, and the spheres are composed of lobular lamellae. The lobular lamellae have the structure of a worm-like mesoporous (about 2.7 nm) framework and a high surface area (about 160.4 m2/g), which were characterized by SEM, TEM, N2 sorption, XRD, TG-DTA, elemental analysis, TOC (total organic carbon), XPS, and FT-IR spectroscopy techniques. The as-prepared NTAZP was used as adsorbent for the efficient removal of heavy metal ions (e.g., Pb2+, Cu2+, and Cd2+). Our results indicate that the material has good prospects for application as an adsorbent in wastewater processing.