Magnetic Nanoadsorbent: Preparation, characterization, and Adsorption Properties for Removal of Copper(II) from Aqueous Solutions

A novel, bis-salophen schiff base ligand anchored magnetic Fe3O4@SiO2 nanoparticles was prepared and applied for removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions. The obtained Fe3O4@SiO2/Schiff base MNPs was characterized by fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and vibration sample magnetometry (VSM). Then, the adsorption activity for copper ions was studied by nonmagnetic, in terms of effect of adsorbent dosage on the adsorption and kinetics behavior. Furthermore, the adsorption and regeneration experiment showed there was about 5% loss in the adsorption capacity of the prepared Fe3O4@SiO2/Schiff base MNPs for copper ions after 6 times reuse. Finally, our results suggested that the Fe3O4@SiO2/Schiff base composites have a great potential to be employed for treatment of wastewater containing Cu(II).