Removal of Hg(Ⅱ)from Prawn Byproducts by 3D Graphene Foam

Mercury(Hg)is a kind of environmental pollutant with strong toxicity,wide distribution and difficult degradation. Hg is easy to concentrate in the viscera and head of prawn,which limits the comprehensive utilization of prawn byproducts. This work focused on the removal of Hg(Ⅱ)from prawn byproducts. Taking the advantages of large specific surface area and abundant hydroxyl and carboxyl functional groups,3D graphene foam(GF)could strongly chelate with Hg(Ⅱ),finally remove Hg(Ⅱ)from prawn byproducts. The contents of Hg(Ⅱ),protein and amino acid in prawn byproducts were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry,ultraviolet absorption spectrometry and formaldehyde titration,respectively. Results showed that the GF was extremely light,and the oxidized GF contained a lot of pores and abundant functional groups. After treating with GF,the amount of Hg(Ⅱ)in prawn byproducts were effectively reduced,and the removal rate was calculated to 92.01%. Moreover,the retention rate of protein and amino acid nitrogen were 94.92%,93.89% respectively. Therefore,dealing prawn processing residues with GF significantly(P<0.05)reduced the amount of Hg(Ⅱ),which would improve the economic benefit of the prawn byproducts.