Utilization of chitosan-coated superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles for chromium removal

Abstract

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) have been widely used for their versatility, while it is coated with a biopolymer like chitosan that adds attraction and also increases its applications. In this study, SPION was synthesized by chemical co-precipitation method, characterized using various analytical techniques like UV–Vis, FTIR, SEM, EDX, TEM, AFM, XRD, zeta potential and Raman spectroscopy analysis. Chitosan was coated onto the SPIONs and used for water treatment to remove chromium (450 ppm concentration). Chitosan-coated SPIONs were found to remove about 80% of chromium. Freundlich model was found to be fitting better for the current study.