Chinese Journal of Catalysis

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Recyclable Fe3O4@SiO2-Ag magnetic nanospheres for the rapid decolorizing of dye pollutants

SUN Lijuana, HE Jianga, AN Songsonga, ZHANG Junweib, ZHENG Jinmina, REN Donga   

  1. a State Key Laboratory of Applied Organic Chemistry, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu, China;
    b Key Laboratory of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials of Ministry of Education, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu, China
  • Received:2013-01-14 Revised:2013-03-28 Online:2013-07-16 Published:2013-07-16
  • Supported by:

    This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (J1103307) and the Natural Science Foundation of Gansu Province in China (3ZS041-A25-009).

Abstract: A simple electroless plating method using non-toxic, cost-effective precursors to fabricate Fe3O4@SiO2-Ag nanospheres for catalytic reduction of dye pollutants is developed. Incorporating the individual advantages of Ag and Fe3O4 nanoparticles, the Fe3O4@SiO2-Ag nanospheres exhibit enhanced catalytic reduction efficiency for rhodamine B and eosin Y compared with those of pure Ag or Fe3O4 nanoparticles, and can also be rapidly separated from aqueous solution using a magnet. The catalytic reaction rate is strongly dependent on both reaction temperature and Fe3O4@SiO2-Ag dosage. The presence of surfactants and inorganic salt (Na2SO4) influences the catalytic activity of the Fe3O4@SiO2-Ag nanospheres. Fe3O4@SiO2-Ag nanospheres show great promise for the treatment of industrial dye pollutants.

Key words: Fe3O4@SiO2-Ag nanocomposite, Catalytic reduction, Dye, Recyclable catalyst