Abstract
The objective of this study was to recover valuable elements such as iron and silicon from iron ore tailings and convert them into value-added mesoporous materials such as MCM-41 and Fe-loaded MCM-41 (Fe/MCM-41). The synthesized samples were systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, N2 adsorption–desorption measurements, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. It was found that the MCM-41 structure was well-preserved after Fe loading, but its specific surface area decreased. The photocatalytic activity of Fe/MCM-41 toward the degradation of methylene blue (MB) aqueous solution was evaluated. The results indicated that all the Fe/MCM-41 samples (with different Fe loadings) were effective for the degradation of MB under visible-light irradiation and that the Fe/MCM-41 sample with Fe content of 5% exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity.
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