Preparation and Characterization of Nanohybrids Made of Graphene Oxide as Super Adsorbents

Adsorption is considered one of the best methods for the removal of heavy metal ions from an aqueous solution. However, the synthesis of adsorbents with desired selectivity and performance remains a key challenge in the battle of water decontamination. Recently, carbon-based and metal-oxide based nanomaterials have emerged as promising candidates for the adsorption of heavy metals due to their high specific surface area, high aspect ratio, and concentrated pore size distribution. Here, in this work five adsorbents ie. Graphene Oxide (GO), Magnetic Graphene Oxide (MGO), Titanium Dioxide (TiO2), and their composites GO-TiO2 and MGO-TiO2 were synthesized. The prepared samples were characterized via high-resolution imaging, BET-N2 adsorption-desorption analysis, and spectroscopic techniques. TEM results revealed the nanoscale structures of the synthesized nanomaterials. The approximate sizes of MGO and TiO2 nanoparticles found under TEM studies were about 24.58 and 35.51 nm respectively. The presence of desired functional groups was very well deciphered by FT-IR spectroscopy. Results of N2 adsorption-desorption studies revealed that the prepared GO was macro-porous while all other samples were mesoporous. MGO was found to have the highest BET surface area of about 108.375 m2/g. These results indicate that the prepared nanomaterials may serve the purpose of effectively adsorbing the heavy metal ions from an aqueous solution.