Facile synthesis and characterization of magnetic iron oxide (Fe3O4)-loaded cationic amino-modified passion fruit shell nanocomposite and their application in removal of anionic Alizarin Red S dye from aqueous medium

Abstract

A newly synthesized magnetic nanocomposite, iron oxide-loaded cationic amino-modified passion fruit shell (Fe3O4@CMPFS), was utilized as a sorbent to eliminate anionic Alizarin Red S (ARS) dye from the wastewater. The Fe3O4@CMPFS was characterized to confirm the properties by physicochemical methods such as VSM, XRD, pHPZC, BET, FTIR, and FE-SEM with EDX. Batch tests were conducted to study the adsorption process, focusing on factors like the solution pH (from 2.0 to 11), amount of Fe3O4@CMPFS (from 10 to 80 mg/30 mL), contact duration (from 0 to 240 min), agitation speed (from 0 to 400 rpm) and temperature (from 298 to 328 K). The optimal conditions for attaining a 92.3 % removal efficiency were found to be a pH of 2.0, 60 mg of Fe3O4@CMPFS, a contact time of 60 min, agitation at 250 rpm, and a temperature of 298 K. The Fe3O4@CMPFS was determined to have a pHPZC value of approximately 6.2. The kinetic data indicated that the adsorption of ARS onto Fe3O4@CMPFS followed the pseudo-second-order model (high R2 = 0.9919; low SSE = 1.5) and was governed by film and intraparticle diffusion mechanisms. Furthermore, the isotherm data fit well with the Langmuir model (high R2 = 0.9983; low χ2 = 12.69), suggesting monolayer adsorption behaviour. The maximal sorption uptake of ARS on the Fe3O4@CMPFS was determined to be 233.4 ± 3.174 mg/g at 298 K through the Langmuir model. The estimated ΔH° (18.3 kJ/mol) and ΔS° (82 J/mol K) indicate the endothermic and enhanced randomness at the adsorbent/solute interface. The negative ΔG° values (−6.2298 to −8.7283 kJ/mol at 298–328 K) confirm spontaneous sorption dominated by physisorption. The Fe3O4@CMPFS composite had good recyclability and was easy to separate from water, which maintained excellent adsorption performance after eight regeneration cycles. The superb adsorption efficiency and recycling performance of Fe3O4@CMPFS provide a prospect way to remove ARS dye from industrial effluents.