Removal of heavy metals using bentonite supported nano-zero valent iron particles

This study reports the composite nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) which was successfully synthesized using low cost natural clay (bentonite). Bentonite composite nZVI (B-nZVI) was introduced to reduce the agglomeration of nZVI particles, thus will used for heavy metals treatment. The synthesized material was analyzed using physical, mineralogy and morphology analysis such as Brunnaer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area, Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). The batch adsorption test of Bentonite and B-nZVI with heavy metals solutions (Pb, Cu, Cd, Co, Ni and Zn) was also conducted to determine their effectiveness in removing heavy metals. Through Batch test, B-nZVI shows the highest adsorption capacity (qe= 50.25 mg/g) compared to bentonite (qe= 27.75 mg/g). This occurred because B-nZVI can reduce aggregation of nZVI, dispersed well in bentonite layers thus it can provide more sites for adsorbing heavy metals.