Polyethylenimine Grafted onto Nano-NiFe 2 O 4 @SiO 2 for the Removal of CrO 4 2− , Ni 2+ , and Pb 2+ Ions from Aqueous Solutions

Polyethyleneimine (PEI) has been reported to have good potential for the adsorption of metal ions. In this work, PEI was covalently bound to NiFe 2 O 4 @SiO 2 nanoparticles to form the new adsorbent NiFe 2 O 4 @SiO 2 –PEI. The material allowed for magnetic separation and was characterized via powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), showing the pattern of the NiFe 2 O 4 core and an amorphous shell. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) showed irregular shaped particles with sizes ranging from 50 to 100 nm, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) showed high C and N contents of 36 and 39%, respectively. This large amount of PEI in the materials was confirmed by thermogravimetry–differential thermal analysis (TGA-DTA), showing a mass loss of about 80%. Fourier-transform IR spectroscopy (FT-IR) showed characteristic resonances of PEI dominating the spectrum. The adsorption of CrO 4 2− , Ni 2+ , and Pb 2+ ions from aqueous solutions was studied at different pH, temperatures, metal ion concentrations, and adsorbent dosages. The maximum adsorption capacities of 149.3, 156.7, and 161.3 mg/g were obtained for CrO 4 2− , Ni 2+ , and Pb 2+ , respectively, under optimum conditions using 0.075 g of the adsorbent material at a 250 mg/L ion concentration, pH = 6.5, and room temperature.