Removal of Zinc from Aqueous Solutions by Magnetite Silica Core-Shell Nanoparticles

Magnetite silica core-shell nanoparticles (Fe3O4-SiO2) were synthesized and evaluated as a nanoadsorbent for removing Zn(II) from aqueous solutions. The core-shell nanoparticles were prepared by combining coprecipitation and sol-gel methods. Nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and FT-IR. The magnetization values of nanoparticles were measured with vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The adsorption of Zn(II) ions was examined by batch equilibrium technique. The effects of pH, initial Zn(II) concentration, and contact time on the efficiency of Zn(II) removal were studied. The equilibrium data, analyzed by using Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models, showed better agreement with the former model. Using the Langmuir isotherm model, maximum capacity of the nanoadsorbent for Zn(II) was found to be 119 mg g−1 at room temperature. Kinetic studies were conducted and the resulting data were analyzed using first- and second-order equations; pseudo-second-order kinetic equation was found to provide the best correlation. The adsorption and sedimentation times were very low. The nanoadsorbent can be easily separated from aqueous solution by a magnet. Repeated adsorption acid regeneration cycles were performed to examine the stability and reusability of the nanoadsorbent. The result of this study proved high stability and reusability of Fe3O4-SiO2 as an adsorbent for Zn(II) ions