The relative performance of gelatin hydrogels doped with nanostructured transition-metal ferrites for chromium (VI) removal: Packed bed column studies and insights into reduction mechanisms

Abstract

The article comprehends investigations using gelatin hydrogels reinforced with cobalt and nickel ferrites to remove chromium ions. The synthesized ferrite nanoparticles are mesoporous with high surface areas of 132.059 m2/g and 141.792 m2/g. The deposition of chromium ions on the dissected surfaces is more evident from the morphological studies. Supporting evidence from thermal studies showed how the nanofiller encapsulation increased hydrogels' thermal stability. The bed capacity in the packed bed column is 32.48 mg/g and 31.81 mg/g for cobalt ferrite and nickel ferrite nanoparticles entrapped hydrogels, respectively. X-ray Photoelectron spectroscopy findings indicated that the presence of characteristic peaks at 578.68 eV and 591.16 eV is assigned to hexavalent chromium, and the peaks observed at 575.56 and 583.71 eV correspond to the trivalent state of chromium. The electron transfer from the iron centre to chromium (VI) favoured the reduction of chromium (VI) to less toxic chromium (III)