Facile synthesis and characterization of Fe3O4/analcime nanocomposite for the efficient removal of Cu(II) and Cd(II) ions from aqueous media

In the water purification field, heavy metal pollution is a problem that causes severe risk aversion. This study aimed to examine the disposal of cadmium and copper ions from aqueous solutions by a novel Fe₃O₄/analcime nanocomposite. A field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and X-ray diffraction were used to characterize the synthesized products. The FE-SEM images showed that the analcime and Fe₃O₄ samples consist of polyhedral and quasi-spherical shapes with average diameters of 923.28 and 28.57 nm, respectively. Besides, the Fe₃O₄/analcime nanocomposite consists of polyhedral and quasi-spherical shapes with average diameters of 1100.00 nm. The greatest uptake capability of the Fe₃O₄/analcime nanocomposite toward the copper and cadmium ions is 176.68 and 203.67 mg/g, respectively. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model and Langmuir equilibrium isotherm best describe the uptake of copper and cadmium ions using the Fe₃O₄/analcime nanocomposite. The uptake of copper and cadmium ions using the Fe₃O₄/analcime nanocomposite is exothermic and chemical in nature.