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Synthesis and Application of Magnesium–Iron Oxide/Hydroxide Bifunctional Materials Supported on Ion Exchange Resins for Simultaneous Phosphate and Hardness Removal from Wastewater

Authors

Keywords:

Bifunctional materials, Magnesium iron (hydro)oxide, Phosphate and hardness, Wastewater treatment, multifunctional materials

Abstract

Phosphate and water hardness are major concerns affecting water quality and wastewater treatment. In this study, a bifunctional Mg–Fe/225H adsorbent was synthesized by depositing magnesium–iron oxide/hydroxide species onto a strongly acidic cation exchange resin through an in situ precipitation process for the simultaneous removal of phosphate and hardness. The adsorbent was characterized by FTIR, XRD, SEM–EDX, and pHpzc analyses, and its adsorption performance was investigated using kinetic, isotherm, thermodynamic, competitive ion, regeneration, and domestic wastewater experiments. Optimum phosphate removal was achieved at an adsorption time of 48 h, an adsorbent dosage of 10 g/L, pH 7, and 30 °C. The adsorption process was well described by the pseudo-second-order kinetic and Langmuir isotherm models. Combined FTIR, XRD, pHpzc, kinetic, thermodynamic, and competitive ion analyses indicated that phosphate removal was governed by electrostatic attraction, surface complexation, and magnesium-assisted phosphate precipitation. The adsorbent retained 90.31% of its initial phosphate removal efficiency after five adsorption–desorption cycles, demonstrating excellent regeneration performance and long-term reusability. The synthesized Mg–Fe/225H adsorbent demonstrates promising potential as a reusable bifunctional material for the simultaneous removal of phosphate and hardness in practical wastewater treatment.

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Published

2026-08-12

How to Cite

Tran, L. B., Nguyen, T. A. T., Mai, V. T., Tran, B. T. V., Tran, Q. L., & Ho, D. N. N. (2026). Synthesis and Application of Magnesium–Iron Oxide/Hydroxide Bifunctional Materials Supported on Ion Exchange Resins for Simultaneous Phosphate and Hardness Removal from Wastewater. Environmental Research and Technology. Retrieved from https://ertjournal.org/index.php/pub/article/view/498

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