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Abstract
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A spinel is a ternary oxide whose general chemical formula is AB2O4, where A represents a divalent metal cation that usually occupies a tetrahedral site and B represents trivalent metal cations that normally occupy the octahedral sites of a cubic lattice [1]. Oxide spinels comprise a very large group of structurally related compounds many of which are of considerable technological significance [2]. Among them, nickel ferrites have become one of the best options for usage in different applications such as medical treatment, electronic devices, electromagnetic wave absorption materials and water purification. The popularity of these ferrites is due to their favourable properties such as high permeability, high resistivity and high saturation magnetization, the porosity of the nanostructures limits the adsorption efficiency. For solving this problem, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) have been integrated into transition metal oxide nanostructures. Hybrid nanostructures show high adsorption capacity due to their increased surface area and can be easily designed.
In this study, a new DESs composed of tetrahexylammonium bromide and hexanol was prepared and it was used to to functionalize the MWCNT/NiFe2O4 hybrid nanostructures. Materials were identified using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The prepared CNT/NiFe2O4 and DES-functionalized MWCNT/ NiFe2O4 were used as adsorbents for bisphenol A (BPA) from aqueous medium. The results showed that BPA adsorption can be significantly improved by functionalizing the surface of MWCNT/NiFe2O4.
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