Removal of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) from aqueous solution by amino-functionalized graphene oxide (AGO) aerogels: Influencing factors, kinetics, isotherms, and thermodynamic studies

Highlights: • AGO aerogels removed >99% of PFOA from 10 mg PFOA L⁻¹ solution. • Contact time, temperature, and pH for PFOA adsorption on AGO aerogels was optimized. • Spontaneous, exothermic, and physical processes controlled PFOA adsorption. • Adsorption using Pseudo-second-order kinetic and Freundlich models was validated. • High adsorption was a product of the structure and amino groups of the aerogel. Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is an emerging organic pollutant that has become ubiquitous in waterways and is difficult to be removed from wastewater using traditional treatment methods. In this study, amino-functionalized graphene oxide (AGO) aerogels were prepared as a potential remediation tool for water contaminated by PFOA. The structure of the prepared absorbent material was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope, and X-ray diffraction. The use of various adsorption times, temperatures, solution pH, and absorbent amount were investigated to determine optimum conditions for PFOA adsorption. Adsorption kinetics and thermodynamics of the absorbent were analyzed as well. AGO aerogels exhibited a high adsorption capacity of PFOA (1575 mg∙g⁻¹) and high removal efficiency (99.95%) in a solution containing 10 mg PFOA L⁻¹, likely due to the interconnected porous microstructures and amino groups of the AGO aerogels. The adsorption kinetics and isotherm of PFOA were well-fitted using pseudo-second-order and the Freundlich modelling. The adsorption mechanism of PFOA onto AGO aerogels followed spontaneous, exothermic, and physical processes. This study shows the potential of this material to remove PFOA from PFOA-contaminated waters effectively by providing insight into the understanding of the adsorption mechanisms of PFOA onto AGO aerogels.