Abstract Heavy metal toxicity is highly demanding and challenging to clean up the pollutants. To recover issues mentioned above, we propose a hydrothermal synthesis of zeolite (NaX-UP). Further surface modification by poly-ethylenimine (PEI) could turn be amine-modified nanosheets (zeolite NSs) possessed plenty hydroxyl amino groups (Al-O, Si-O-Si, Si-OH NH 2 ) on their surface, decorated with ...