Novel Fe3O4–poly(methacryloxyethyltrimethyl ammonium chloride) adsorbent for the ultrafast and efficient removal of anionic dyes

Abstract

The removal of anionic dyes from wastewater has attracted global concern. In this work, a novel Fe₃O₄–poly(methacryloxyethyltrimethyl ammonium chloride) (Fe₃O₄–pDMC) adsorbent for the efficient removal of anionic dyes from wastewater was successfully synthesized by grafting methacryloxyethyltrimethyl ammonium chloride (DMC) on the surfaces of Fe₃O₄. Various characterization analyses confirmed that the obtained Fe₃O₄–pDMC possessed numerous functional groups on its surfaces and retained good magnetic separation properties. Fe₃O₄–pDMC showed ultrafast removal for acid orange 7 (AO7, 58.6%, 1 min) and direct blue 15 (DB15, 98.1%, 1 min), and the maximum adsorption capacity was high (266.8 and 336.5 mg g⁻¹ for AO7 and DB15, respectively). In addition, the adsorption process was in accordance with pseudo-second-order kinetics and the Langmuir isotherm. The mechanism underlying the adsorption of Fe₃O₄–pDMC on anionic dyes was mainly dependent on electrostatic interaction. This study illustrated that Fe₃O₄–pDMC has great potential applications as an environmentally friendly, desirable adsorbent for the efficient removal of anionic dyes from wastewater.