Synthesis and characterization of chitosan-magnetic iron nanoparticles

Absorption is a common technology used for water and wastewater treatment since it is often fast and efficient, while costly at the same time. Therefore, the development of low-cost and efficient adsorbents has led to the rapid growth of research interest in this regard. Chitosan is a natural polyaminosaccharide with effective adsorption properties, which is applied to remove various pollutants. However, it has low efficiency in the adsorption of some pollutants, and its separation from aqueous solutions is difficult as well. Therefore, modification of chitosan has been recommended to address this issue. The present study aimed to synthesize nanosized chitosan-magnetic iron particles and determine their properties. Magnetic iron nanoparticles were fabricated using the chemical precipitation method, and magnetic chitosan was prepared. Several methods were applied to assess the properties of the synthesized adsorbent, including scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering, and zeta potential. Chitosan-magnetic iron nanoparticles had higher surface roughness and irregular pores, and the magnetic iron nanoparticles were successfully embedded in chitosan. Due to the surface charge of the chitosan-magnetic iron nanoparticles, it could be used as an effective adsorbent for the removal of contaminants with negative charge and their complete separation from aqueous solutions using magnets.