Citrate Stabilized Hierarchical SPIO Nanostructures: Synthesis and Application Towards Effective Removal of Toxin, Microcystin-LR from Water

摘要

abstract_textpHierarchical hollow nanostructures because of their unique structural, physical and chemical properties make them potentially attractive in various fields like catalysis, delivery vehicles, sensors, photonic devices, optics and as adsorbents. The present study deals with a simple method for the synthesis of citrate stabilized hierarchical hollow superparamagnetic Fe3O4 nanospheres (SPION's) for the facile removal of Microcystin-LR (MC-LR), a cyanobacteria produced toxin from water. The morphological and structural evaluation confirms the formation of magnetite Fe3O4 hollow nanospheres of size around 300 nm by the assembly of 10 nm sized nanoparticles. The magnetic studies showed that the as prepared spheres were superparamagnetic at room temperature, with saturation magnetization around 50-60 emu/g and negligible remanence and coercivity. The amount of MC-LR adsorbed on the SPION's was estimated by HPLC and higher adsorption was observed in hollow Fe3O4 spheres. The superparamagnetic nature of hollow Fe3O4 makes the extraction of MC-LR from water convenient improving the efficiency of water treatment, making it reusable and cost effective./p/abstract_text