Green NiFe2O4 nano-sorbent construction via Foeniculum vulgare extract for efficient barium ions removal

Abstract Ba ions were successfully adsorbed using green NiFe2O4-NPs that were generated using Foeniculum vulgare seeds extract. To investigate the structural and textural characteristics of the adsorbent powder, X-ray diffraction (XRD), nitrogen adsorption–desorption isotherm, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transformer infrared (FTIR), and scanning/transmission electron microscopy (SEM) examinations were conducted. The FTIR and EDX investigations revealed the formation of NiFe2O4-NPs as indicated by the elemental composition and the bonding patterns. Some remarkable properties, including the growth of crystallite size and lattice parameters, were reached due to the extract addition, as revealed further by XRD examination. The sorption results were consistent with the Langmuir isotherm model, and the kinetic data were in accordance with pseudo-second-order kinetics. As a result of the electrostatic interaction between the negatively charged NiFe2O4-NPs surface and the positively charged Ba (II) ions, the adsorption process improved significantly above pHzc. The NiFe2O4 nanostructures with high competence for Ba2+ adsorption could be nominated to abolish additional harmful metal cations.