Removal of Arsenic (III) from natural contaminated water using magnetic nanocomposite: kinetics and isotherm studies

The application of newly synthesized Fe 3 O 4 /TiO 2 –SiO 2 that is modified with zinc (FTSZ) as a sorbent, for the removal of arsenic from contaminated water has been investigated in the present study. SEM, FTIR, XRD, BET, Zeta potential sizer ( ξ ) analyses are used to determine the sorbent characterization. The effect of the operational parameters such as initial pH, initial concentration, and the contact time were studied. In addition, the equilibrium behavior of FTSZ in As(III) removal was investigated in the temperature range of 20–40 °C. The results showed that the equilibrium data were fitted well with Langmuir than Freundlich isotherm model. The maximum monolayer adsorption capacity estimated by Langmuir isotherm was 24.010 mg g −1 . Thermodynamic parameters, ∆ H °, ∆S° and ∆G° were also calculated from graphical interpretation of the experimental data. Standard heats of sorption (∆ H °) were found to be endothermic and ∆ S ° values were calculated to be positive for the sorption of As(III) onto the adsorbent.