Synthesis, characterization and potential application of magnetized nanoparticles for photocatalysis of Levafix CA reactive azo‐dye in aqueous effluent

Abstract

Abstract Dyes represent major environmental concerns since their presence in aqueous effluents posed a threat to the ecological system. This work is focused on developing a sustainable photo‐Fenton strategy for efficient Levafix Blue oxidation. Nanostructured magnetite as the precursor of the oxidation technique has been synthesized via a simple co‐precipitation technique. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were applied to characterize the samples. The experimental dye removal data revealed that almost complete dye removal (99.9%) was attained at pH 3.0 using 800 and 40 mg/L of H 2 O 2 and magnetite reagents, respectively within 30‐min of irradiation time. The process follows the first‐order reaction model with endothermic and non‐spontaneous oxidation reaction in nature with a low activation energy barrier of 14.29 kJ/mol. Finally, the experimental data reveals that magnetite could be easily recovered and recycled up to six treatment cycles with a removal efficiency of 71% confirms the process sustainability.