Kirti Srivastava, Roli Verma, R.S. Jagadish, Yamini Pandey, Abhishek Kumar
Iron oxide nanoparticles (IONPs) are highly effective and environmentally sustainable adsorbents for the removal of heavy metals from wastewater. This study focuses on exploring a green route for synthesizing IONPs using Hibiscus rosa-sinensis petal extract, promoting an eco-friendly approach. The synthesized particles were evaluated analytically using XRD, confirming a crystallite size of 6.16 nm, and were assessed for adsorption of Pb(II) and Cu(II) ions. Optimized adsorption conditions, including pH 5 and an interaction period of 30 minutes, resulted in high removal efficiencies of 95.48% for Pb(II) and 84.9% for Cu(II). Adsorption behavior was best explained by the Langmuir isotherm, revealing maximum adsorption capacities of 30.77 mg/g and 28.74 mg/g for Pb(II) and Cu(II) respectively, while kinetic studies confirmed a pseudo-second-order model. These findings underscore the potency of green-synthesized IONPs as a promising and sustainable solution for wastewater treatment, paving the way for their potential real-world applications.