Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
JOURNAL OF POLYMERS AND THE ENVIRONMENT, cilt.34, ss.1-18, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
Effective management of radioactive nuclear waste is vital for a
sustainable energy supply. However, challenges in the synthesis and
design of ideal adsorbent materials with desired adsorption properties
remain. Here, a novel graphitic carbon nitride-based adsorbent was
developed for the removal of uranium(VI) and thorium(IV) from
wastewater. For this, sulfur-doped graphitic carbon nitride (SCN)
nanosheets were prepared through the calcination of thiourea, and their
surfaces were modified with polyserotonin (PS) using a simple enzymatic
polymerization process. The modification process enhanced the surface
area, functionality, and dispersion stability of the SCN. Batch
experiments were performed at various temperatures, contact times, pH
levels, and initial solution concentrations to assess adsorption
performance, kinetics, and thermodynamics. The experiments showed that
SCN had an excellent Th(IV) adsorption capacity of 336.43 mg/g. The PS
modification increased its Th(IV) adsorption by 1.5 times (565.83 mg/g)
and enhanced U(VI) adsorption performance by more than 2.5 times (from
36.88 to 94.10 mg/g). Moreover, these adsorption performances were
achieved at low adsorbent concentrations (1–5 mg) and low radionuclide
concentrations (5–50 mg/L). This composite adsorbent (SCN@PS) exhibited
relatively good reusability and strong anti-interference properties,
highlighting its stability and practical application. The adsorption
mechanisms were elucidated by XPS analysis. The findings indicated that
U(VI) ions selectively coordinated mainly with the oxygen atoms of the
composite material, whereas Th(IV) ions coordinated mainly with sulfur
atoms.