Chromium (VI) removal using cerium doped iron oxide nanoparticles

The presence of high concentrations of hexavalent chromium in effluents is extremely harmful to the environment. To solve this environmental problem, several chemical treatments are applied in order to reduce the concentration of these ions in aqueous solutions, generally involving the reduction of Cr (VI) to Cr (III). Adsorption is a simple, efficient and economical method for the removal of contaminants, when a low-cost adsorbent is used. In this work, particles of cerium-doped iron oxides with different stoichiometric ratios were produced, with the adsorption capacity being evaluated by the removal of hexavalent chromium present in aqueous solution. Doping with cerium produced iron oxides with high surface area and certain textural characteristics, which favored the ability to remove chromium from aqueous solutions with a mechanism that combines adsorption and photoreduction of Cr (VI).