Batch and column separation characteristics of copper-imprinted porous polymer micro-beads synthesized by a direct imprinting method

Copper (II) ion-imprinted porous polymethacrylate micro-particles were prepared. Two functional monomers, methacrylic acid and vinyl pyridine, formed a complex with the template copper ion through ionic interactions. The self-assembled copper/monomer complex was polymerized in the presence of an ethylene glycol dimethacrylate cross-linker by a suspension method. After the imprinting sites were provided through removal of the template, the micro-porous particles, of approximate size 200 μm, were obtained for batch and column separation applications. The chemical structure and morphology of the Cu(II)-imprinted micro-porous particles were analyzed using FTIR, SEM, and BET. The adsorption capacity and adsorption kinetics of the imprinted beads for the template Cu(II) ion were significantly affected by particle size, copper ion concentration, pH, and flow rate of the feed solution. The imprinted particles showed high selectivity for the copper ion over other metal ions such as Ni and Zn. The selectivity of the present imprinted polymers for the copper ion was at least 10 times as high as those from commercial sources.