The use of zinc metalloporphyrin grafted magnetic nanoparticles for the removal of sulfate ions from wastewaters

This study investigates an application of zinc metalloporphyrin grafted Fe3O4 nanoparticles as a new adsorbent for removal of sulfate ions from wastewaters. The modification of magnetite nanoparticles was conducted by 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane followed by zinc (II) porphyrin in order to enhance the removal of sulfate ions. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was used to characterize the synthesized nano sorbent. The effect of important experimental factors such as pH, contact time, sorbent dosage and some co-existing anions present in aqueous solutions were investigated. Under optimal conditions (i.e. contact time: 30 min, pH: 6.5 and nanosorbents dosage: 100 mg) for a sulfate sample (50 mL, 50 mgL-1 ) the percentage of the extracted sulfate ions was 94.5%. Regeneration of sulfate adsorbed material could be possible by NaOH solution and the modified magnetic nano sorbent exhibited good reusability.