Magnetic nanomaterial derived from graphene oxide/layered double hydroxide hybrid for efficient removal of methyl orange from aqueous solution

Abstract

Magnetic hybrid nanomaterials composed of reduced graphene oxide, zero-valent nickel, and NiAl-mixed metal oxides (rGO/Ni/MMO) have been synthesized by calcining graphene oxide (GO)/layered double hydroxide (LDH) hybrid in nitrogen atmosphere. Structural characterizations demonstrate that with the presence of GO substrate, NiAl–LDHs can be reduced into zero-valent Ni and NiAl–MMOs during calcination. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is used to investigate the morphology of the as-prepared hybrid nanomaterials, demonstrating that the introduction of GO substrate prevents the aggregation of LDHs. Magnetism characterization proves the ferromagnetic property of rGO/Ni/MMO hybrid. This magnetic hybrid nanomaterial exhibits excellent adsorption ability toward methyl orange (MO) in aqueous solutions. The kinetics of the adsorption process and the adsorption isotherm are investigated. The MO removal process is found to obey the Redlich–Peterson isotherm model, and its kinetics follows pseudo-second-order rate equation. In addition, the magnetic hybrid also exhibits good recycle ability for MO removal. This novel magnetic hybrid nanomaterial derived from GO/LDH hybrid demonstrates great potential in the applications of water treatment.