Synthesis of KMnO4-treated magnetic graphene oxide nanocomposite (Fe3O4@GO/MnO x ) and its application for removing of Cu2+ ions from aqueous solution

A magnetic KMnO4-treated graphene-oxide-based nanocomposite, Fe3O4@GO/MnOx, was synthesized through a facile hydrothermal technique. The properties of the Fe3O4@GO/MnOx nanocomposite were characterized by SEM, XRD and FTIR. Batch experiments showed that the maximum adsorption capacity calculated by the Langmuir model for Cu2+ was 62.65 mg g−1 at T = 303.15 K. Kinetics and XPS analysis also revealed that the mechanism of Cu2+ removal was mainly a chemical adsorption process involving both the MnOx particles and oxygen functional groups. The prepared Fe3O4@GO/MnOx was found to be an ideal adsorbent for the removal of Cu2+ ions due to the MnOx particle coating, and was easily separated using a magnetic field after utilization. Reusability studies imply that Fe3O4@GO/MnOx is a suitable material for heavy metal ion removal from aqueous solutions in real applications.