Simultaneous Removal of Multiple Heavy Metal Ions from River Water Using Ultrafine Mesoporous Magnetite Nanoparticles

Theexploration of simultaneous removal of co-existing or multiplepollutants from water by the means of nanomaterials paves a new avenuethat is free from secondary pollution and inexpensive. In the aquaticenvironment, river water contains a mixture of ions, which can influencethe adsorption process. In this respect, removing heavy metal ionsbecomes a true challenge. Here, four heavy metal ions, namely, Pb2+, Cd2+, Cu2+, and Ni2+,have been successfully removed simultaneously from river water usingultrafine mesoporous magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles(UFMNPs) based on the affinity of these metal ions toward the UFMNPsurfaces as well as their unique mesoporous structure, promoting theeasy adsorption. The individual removal efficiencies of Pb2+, Cd2+, Cu2+, and Ni2+ ions fromriver water were 98, 87, 90, and 78%, respectively, whereas the removalefficiencies of the mixed Pb2+, Cd2+, Cu2+, and Ni2+ ions were 86, 80, 84, and 54%, respectively,in the same river water. Thus, the data clearly indicate the complexremoval of heavy metal ions in multi-ion systems. This study has demonstratedthe huge potential of UFMNPs to be effective for their use in wastewatertreatment, especially to simultaneously remove multiple heavy metalions from aqueous media.