Adsorption behavior and mechanism of arsenic on mesoporous silica modified by iron-manganese binary oxide (FeMnOx/SBA-15) from aqueous systems

Iron-manganese binary oxides (FeMnO x ) can remove contaminants from aqueous solutions with high efficiency, and mesoporous silica (SBA-15) is widely used as a supporting material due to its large specific surface area and good stability. In this study, SBA-15 was used to support FeMnO x in the synthesis of a novel arsenic (As) adsorbent (FeMnO x /SBA-15), and its characteristics under different reaction conditions, such as pH, temperature, presence of competing ions, and humic acid, were tested. The results showed that the contaminant adsorption efficiency of the novel adsorbent was better than that of bare FeMnO x , as the addition of SBA-15 decreased the agglomeration effect of FeMnO x . Additionally, FeMnO x /SBA-15 underwent calcination to further enhance its performance. The state of iron and manganese in FeMnO x /SBA-15 and the corresponding arsenic removal efficiency were improved by calcination at 350 °C with an FeMnO x /SBA-15 mass fraction of approximately 45%. Almost 90% of As (50 mL, 5.0 mg L −1 ) could be removed by 0.2 g L −1 of FeMnO x /SBA-15 (mass ratio of 45% and calcination temperature of 350 °C). The FeMnO x /SBA-15 could regenerate and still be used after four consecutive cycles. The high As sorption capacity, ability to regenerate, and reusability of FeMnO x /SBA-15 confirmed that this adsorbent is promising for treating As-contaminated drinking water.