Fabrication of magnetically recyclable Fe3O4@Cu nanocomposites with high catalytic performance for the reduction of organic dyes and 4-nitrophenol

A facile and efficient approach to synthesize Fe 3 O 4 @Cu nanocomposites using l -Lysine as a linker was developed. The morphology, composition and crystallinity of the Fe 3 O 4 @Cu nanocomposites were characterized by Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy , transmission electron microscopy , energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and powder X-ray diffraction. In addition, the magnetic properties were determined with vibrating sample magnetometer . The surface of the Fe 3 O 4 contained many small Cu nanoparticles with sizes of about 3 nm. It was found that the Fe 3 O 4 @Cu nanocomposites could catalyze the degradation of organic dyes. The catalytic activities of the Fe 3 O 4 @Cu nanocomposites for the reduction of nitrophenol were also studied. The Fe 3 O 4 @Cu nanocomposites are more efficient catalysts compared with Cu nanoparticles and can easily be recovered from the reaction mixture with magnet. The cost effective and recyclable Fe 3 O 4 @Cu nanocomposites provide an exciting new material for environmental protection applications.