Amino-functionalized Fe₃O₄/SiO₂ magnetic submicron composites and In³⁺ ion adsorption properties

Five kinds of amino-functionalized (polyaniline, poly(1,2-diaminobenzene), poly(1,3-diaminobenzene), poly(diphenylamine), and poly(o-toluidine)) Fe ₃O₄/SiO₂ submicron composites (SCs) were prepared. The SEM and TEM results showed that these SCs possessed a sphere-like core/shell structure with an average diameter of ~500 nm. The XRD results indicated good crystallinity of Fe₃O₄ core, the amorphous SiO₂, and amino-functionalized shells. The XPS results confirmed that amino groups were plentiful rich outside the surface of these SCs which acted as the effective groups for adsorbing the metal ions. These SCs showed a good thermal stability at 20-250 C. The high saturation magnetization of 60-70 emu/g is better than other similar reports. In³⁺ adsorption coefficients from aqueous solution by these SCs were higher than 10⁶ mL/g, indicating the higher selectivity and affinity to In³⁺ compared with Cd²⁺ and Hg²⁺ ions. In addition, these SCs could be magnetically reclaimed within 30 s and regenerated with acid after adsorption. The adsorption capabilities only decreased by 6 % after five cycles. The present work indicates that the amino-functionalized Fe₃O ₄/SiO₂ SCs are promising for removal of In³⁺ ions in field application.