TAGRA 2024

The presence of lead in the environment poses a serious threat to ecosystems. This heavy metal is an inorganic pollutant that is non-biodegradable and toxic. The adverse health outcomes associated with lead poisoning are numerous and include kidney damage, nerve damage, liver damage, infertility, miscarriages and neonatal deaths. Due to their large specific surface area, high reactivity, and ability to remove a wide range of pollutants (1–1000 ppm) in a shorter time, nano-sized sorbents are advantageous for removing heavy metal ions. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is one of popular nano-metal oxide adsorbent materials that is employed in the remediation of organic and inorganic pollutants in water due to its distinctive properties, including non-toxicity, affordability, hydrophilicity, a large surface area, and photocatalysis. Furthermore, nanosized magnetite (Fe3O4) particles are an effective means of removing heavy metals, due to their magnetic properties, large surface area, chemical stability, facile synthesis, and low toxicity. The separation of magnetic adsorbents from medium is a straightforward process that can be achieved through the application of an external magnetic field, thereby reducing secondary waste. To enhance the surface area of the magnetic adsorbent and prevent aggregation, support materials are used. As a support material, TiO2 nanowires with a large surface area were synthesized and coated with PLDOPA film, in this study. The film facilitated the decoration of Fe3O4 nanoparticles on a nanowire structure in a controlled manner, thereby preventing aggregation. TiO2@PLDOPA@Fe3O4 nanocomposite was employed in adsorption experiments to remove Pb(II) ions from aqueous solutions. We investigated the effect of temperature and stirring speed on heavy metal removal. The nanocomposite was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and its adsorption capacity was determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Consequently, TiO2@PLDOPA@Fe3O4 nanocomposite exhibited an effective lead ion adsorption capacity.