Abstract
In this work, the efficacy of MgFe2O4 nanoparticles as an adsorbent for the removal of the toxic methylene blue dye from aqueous media under ultrasonication was evaluated. The MgFe2O4 nanoparticles displayed a BET surface area of 62.29 m(2)/g and a pore volume of 0.1523 cc/g. In addition, the mean pore diameter is 4.62 nm, which verifies the mesoporous character of the MgFe2O4 nanoparticles. Besides, the average crystallite size is 15.86 nm. The FE-SEM image of MgFe2O4 nanoparticles showed the presence of spherical particles with a mean grain size of 0.21 mu m. Also, the TEM image of MgFe2O4 nanoparticles showed the presence of polyhedral particles with a mean diameter of 42.50 nm. Besides, the ultrasonication aids in achieving equilibrium in a shorter contact time than other conventional adsorption procedures such as stirring and shaking due to the enhanced mass transfer. The maximum adsorption capacity of MgFe2O4 nanoparticles toward methylene blue dye is 537.63 mg/g. Adsorption of methylene blue dye using MgFe2O4 nanoparticles fits well with the Langmuir equilibrium isotherm as well as the pseudo-second-order kinetic model.