Fabrication and characterization of electrospun Fe3O4/o-MWCNTs/polyamide 6 hybrid nanofibrous membrane composite as an efficient and recoverable adsorbent for removal of Pb (II)

The fabrication of novel polymeric nanofiber and its potential are versatility prompted to adoptive functionalized hybrid nanomaterials for the removal of toxic pollutants. In this pursuit, a novel magnetic functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (o-MWCNTs) has been combined on the surface of Polyamide 6 (PA6, Nylon 6) that prepared by a simple two steps, namely; (i) decoration of Fe3O4 onto the functionalized o-MWCNTs through co-precipitation method. (ii) facile electrospinning of the PA6 solution containing 1 wt% of o-MWCNTs/Fe3O4. The magnetic o-MWCNTs impregnated easily into the polymer matrix due to the magnetic and electrically-conductive features of the o-MWCNTs/Fe3O4. Formic acid and dichloromethane are used as good solvents in mixtures to generate homogenous and free bead fiber surface fiber. The effects of polymer solution and processing parameters on the fiber morphology are discussed in details. The production of ultrafine, free bead, stable, homogenous and continuous nanofibrous hybrid composite with an average diameter 101 nm is achieved using 15 wt% PA6 and 1 wt% o-MWCNTs/Fe3O4 in 1.5:1 M ratio of formic acid: dichloromethane at applied voltage of 26 kV, a spinning distance of 19 cm, and the feed flow rate of 0.3 ml/h. The adsorption efficiency of the composite is strongly depending on various factors, such as; pH, in batch mode. The novel Fe3O4/o-MWCNTs/PA6 hybrid composite not only exhibited the effective separation capability of Pb (II) ions from an aqueous solution, but also can be separated more easily from solution system. Weak acid (pH = 6) is favored for Pb (II) ion removal. Moreover, the electrospinning of magnetic polymer solution to form hybrid magnetic membrane is very effective method for having enhancement of magnetic properties. The hybrid nanofiber membranes also exhibited easily regeneration and recycling at least for four adsorption-desorption recycles. The unique properties render the hybrid composite highly promising as an advanced adsorbent for huge potential in wastewater treatment for heavy metal removal in industrial scale. •A new adsorbent Fe3O4/o-MWCNTs/polyamide 6 (CFPA6) hybrid nanofibrous membrane was successfully prepared.•The continuous nanofiber membrane obtained by optimization of solvent was proved by SEM.•A remarkable enhancement in adsorption capacity of Pb (II) ions was exhibited by CFPA6 composites.•The mechanisms for Pb (II) ions removal was illuminated by XPS and FT-IR analysis.•The nanofibrous CFP