Abstract
A magnetic nanocomposite, CoFe2O4/Graphene oxide (CoFe2O4/GO) was fabricated for highly efficient separation of f-block elements. The growth of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles on the GO nanosheets was confirmed by the X-ray diffraction pattern. The sorbent was found to be superparamagnetic with a large magnetization saturation (38 emu g‒1). This magnetic nanocomposite was found to have high sorption capacity for f-block elements following their ionic potential. The sorption kinetics followed the pseudo-second-order model, whereas the sorption data fitted well in the Freundlich isotherm due to the surface heterogeneity. The thermodynamic analysis revealed the process to be entropically driven and spontaneous. The complex with trivalent f-cation was found to be asymmetric with no inner-sphere water molecules. The spectroscopic analysis confirmed the strong complexation of Sm(III) with oxygen-containing functionalities of CoFe2O4/GO. The excellent radiolytic stability and regeneration ability of CoFe2O4/GO showed that the sorbent could be successfully applied for nuclear waste remediation.
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