A new, simple one-step approach has been developed to synthesize lignin and lignin amine coated Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles. These nanoparticles (lignin magnetic nanoparticles (LMNPs) and lignin amine magnetic nanoparticles (LAMNPs)) are found to possess not only magnetic response but also pH-dependent adsorption behavior. Results show that the combination of lignin with nanoparticles increased the adsorption capacities 2-5 times higher than other traditional single lignin based adsorbents (211.42 mg/g for methylene blue (MB) by LMNPs and 176.49 mg/g for acid scarlet GR (AS-GR) by LAMNPs). Meanwhile, by simply adjusting the pH, the dye-loaded adsorbents can be regenerated to recycle both adsorbents and dyes with a desorption efficiency up to 90%. Mechanistic study shows that dye structure and surface charges of adsorbents play the most important part in adsorption where dyes interact with the adsorbent surface via π-π stacking and electrostatic attraction interactions. The efficient fabrication method, eco-friendly reactant, quick magnetic separation, high adsorption and desorption efficiency suggest this novel type of nano-adsorbents to be promising materials for efficient dye pollutant removal and recovery.
Keywords: dye removal; lignin; magnetic nanoparticles; one-step fabrication; water treatment.