Mechanism of the reduction of hexavalent chromium by organo-montmorillonite supported iron nanoparticles.

Iron nanoparticles exhibit greater reactivity than micro-sized Fe(0), and they impart advantages for groundwater remediation. In this paper, supported iron nanoparticles were synthesized to further enhance the speed and efficiency of remediation. Natural montmorillonite and organo-montmorillonite were chosen as supporting materials. The capacity of supported iron nanoparticles was evaluated, compared to unsupported iron nanoparticles, for the reduction of aqueous Cr(VI). The reduction of Cr(VI) was much greater with organo-montmorillonite supported iron nanoparticles and fitted the pseudo-second order equation better. With a dose at 0.47 g/L, a total removal capacity of 106 mg Cr/g Fe(0) was obtained. Other factors that affect the efficiency of Cr(VI) removal, such as pH values, the initial Cr(VI) concentration and storage time of nanoparticles were investigated. X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS) and X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) were used to figure out the mechanism of the removal of Cr(VI). XPS indicated that the Cr(VI) bound to the particle surface was completely reduced to Cr(III) under a range of conditions. XANES confirmed that the Cr(VI) reacted with iron nanoparticles was completely reduced to Cr(III).