Thiol-functionalized magnetite/graphene oxide hybrid as a reusable adsorbent for Hg2+ removal

A thiol-functionalized magnetite/graphene oxide (MGO) hybrid as an adsorbent of Hg2+ was successfully synthesized by a two-step reaction. It exhibited a higher adsorption capacity compared to the bare graphene oxide and MGO due to the combined adsorption of thiol groups and magnetite nanocrystals. Its capacity reached 289.9 mg g-1 in a solution with an initial Hg2+ concentration of 100 mg l-1. After being exchanged with H+, the adsorbent could be reused. The adsorption of Hg2+ by the thiol-functionalized MGO fits well with the Freundlich isotherm model and followed pseudo-second-order kinetics.