MORPHOLOGICAL AND STRUCTURAL STUDIES OF IRON OXIDE-CNT NANOCOMPOSITES BY ROBUST OXIDATION

Syahriza Ismail; Daniel Qayyum Anton; Noor Irinah Omar; Monna Rozanna

Syahriza Ismail
Daniel Qayyum Anton Faculty of Industrial and Manufacturing Technology and Engineering, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, Hang Tuah Jaya, 76100 Durian Tunggal, Melaka, Malaysia.
Noor Irinah Omar Faculty of Mechanical Technology and Engineering, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, Hang Tuah Jaya, 76100 Durian Tunggal, Melaka, Malaysia.
Monna Rozanna Research Center for Environmental and Clean Technology, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, KST Samaun Samadikun, Bandung 40135, Indonesia.

Keywords: Iron oxide, carbon nanotubes, oxidation

Abstract

Heavy metals in wastewater pose a significant risk to the environment and human health due to their aquatic toxicity. This study investigates the optimal temperature for thermal oxidation to produce iron oxide nanowires and examines the adsorption capabilities of iron oxide-CNT (carbon nanotube) nanocomposites for heavy metal ions removal. Iron oxide nanowires facilitate magnetic separation post-adsorption, while CNTs provide a large surface area for the metal ion attraction. The iron oxide nanowires are synthesized through thermal oxidation, and the nanocomposite is formed via spin coating. Morphological and structural properties are analysed using Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy. The morphological studies show that the formation and properties of iron oxide nanowires can significantly vary with oxidation temperature. Temperatures between 450 °C and 650 °C have shown to produce a different crystalline peaks and morphologies. Thus, indicate that the formation and quantity of iron oxide nanostructures may vary with temperature. Meanwhile, adsorption capabilities of lead ions are assessed with UV-Vis spectroscopy by measuring the absorbance of heavy metal ions at specific wavelengths. With usage of the iron oxide- CNT nanocomposite, the absorption of the lead ions increases with longer immersion times. Thus, the iron oxide-CNT nanocomposites produced in this study has high potential for applications in wastewater treatment.