Facile preparation and application of AlxMgFe2-xO4 nanoparticles as a magnetic nano-sorbent for preconcentration of cadmium

A simple co-precipitation method was applied for the preparation of aluminum-doped magnesium ferrite (Al(x)MgFe2-xO4) nanoparticles. The prepared Al(x)MgFe2-xO4 nanoparticles was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The synthesized Al(x)MgFe2-xO4 nanoparticles was applied as an adsorbent for developing a novel magnetic solid-phase extraction method for the preconcentration of cadmium ion in aqueous samples, following its quantification by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. Based on the method validation, the method linear dynamic range was 0.2-24.0 ng mL(-1) with a limit of detection of 0.05 ng mL(-1). The intra- and inter-day precision of the developed method were evaluated by conducting five consecutive replicate experiments in one day and five days and the relative standard deviation percentages were obtained to be 2.6% and 3.5%, respectively. Under optimized conditions, the accuracy of the presented method was evaluated by the analysis of a certified reference sample. Moreover, the applicability of the developed method for Cd(II) ion determination was validated by preconcentration and determination of Cd(II) ion in various natural waters. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

A simple co-precipitation method was applied to synthesize Al(x)MgFe2-xO4 nanoparticles, which were further used for magnetic solid-phase extraction. The developed method showed a good linear dynamic range, low detection limit, and high intra- and inter-day precision.