Facile synthesis of zero valent iron magnetic biochar composites for Pb(II) removal from the aqueous medium

New zero valent iron magnetic biochar composites (ZVI-MBC) were synthesized by facile method using Eucalyptus globules bark waste. The as-prepared ZVI-MBC was used as an adsorbent for the removal of Pb(II) from aqueous solution. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) were used for characterization of ZVI-MBC. Effect of variable parameters including pH, contact time and initial concentration of metal ions was studied. The ZVI-MBC exhibited good adsorption performance over the initial pH at 6. The adsorption isotherm data were fitted well to Langmuir isotherm then Freundlich model, and the adsorption capacity was found to be 60.8 mg/g at 303 K. The kinetic data were studied by applying two adsorption kinetic models, pseudo-first- and pseudo-second-order equations. The experimental kinetic data fitted very well to the pseudo-second-order model. The experimental results herein suggest that ZVI-MBC can be used as low cost-effective material for the removal of Pb(II) from water systems with a simple magnetic separation process.