Fe3O4@C core-shell nanoparticles as adsorbent of ionic zinc: evaluating of the adsorptive capacity

Zinc is an important chemical element in many metabolic mechanisms at low concentrations, but can be toxic when administrated in doses higher than 500 µg·g-1 or 3 mg·L-1. This metal has been detected in many aquatic environments due to several industry activities and swine manure effluents. Thus, the contaminant removal of water and wastewater has been a major challenge. Many processes are applied and evaluated in an attempt to removal zinc found in environment, such as adsorption. In the present study Fe3O4@C core-shell nanoparticles were synthesized and used to adsorb ionic zinc species in aqueous solutions. The core-shell nanoparticles exhibited excellent zinc removal capacity, with a maximum efficiency equal 65% where applied in an aqueous solution containing 10 mg·l-1 of this ionic metal.