Chemistry, Physics and Technology of Surface

ISSN 2518-1238 (Online), ISSN 2079-1704 (Print)

Iron nanoparticles show great reactivity in the remediation of groundwater and soil or other environmental applications, however, the persistence and dispersion of iron nanoparticles need to be improved. In this study, palygorskite and hexadecyl trimethylammonium modified palygorskite were used to support iron nanoparticles.The electron microscopic study of the obtained materials is performed. Iron nanoparticles had a core–shell structure with the core being iron, and the shell consisting of iron (hydr)oxides were detected by X-ray diffraction patterns. The sorption of uranium(VI) and cobalt(II) ions from contaminated waters using nanodispersed reactive active material on the basis of modified surfactant of clay mineral were investigated. The reduction of U(VI) and Co(II) was highest with HDTMA-palygorskite/iron particles, followed by palygorskite/iron particles and free iron nanoparticles.It has been shown that the efficiency of removal of metal ions is substantially influenced by the pH of the aqueous medium, the content of surfactant and the amount of immobilized nanosized Fe⁰ on the surface of the palygorskite. The influence of iron in the composite on its sorption properties was investigated. It has been found that the optimum content of Fe in the composite for the extraction of Co(II) and U(VI) ions from aqueous solutions is 10 % of the mass of the sorbent. The processes of aging of composites and loss of reactivity with respect to Co(II) ions are studied. The possibility of their use in the purification of groundwater with the use of modern environmental technologies is shown.It has been found that the composite sorbent exhibits the best sorption properties in relation to both uranium(VI) and cobalt(II), rather than pure nanosized iron, due to the increase of its dispersion due to the decrease in the agglomeration of nanosized iron particles and the increase in the specific surface area of the modified specimens. The presence of organo-palygorskite apparently decreased the extent of aggregation and the size of the iron particles. The prospect of using composites based on palygorskite and organopalygorskite with a layer applied Fe⁰ for the effective removal of heavy metal ions and radionuclides from aqueous media has been established.

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