Preparation of Ca-alginate coated nZVI core shell beads for uranium (VI) removal from aqueous solution

In this study, the core–shell nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI)@Alg–Ca beads were synthesized by coaxial electronic injection method for removal of U (VI) from aqueous solution, and characterized by SEM, EDX and XPS. The results showed that the pseudo-second-order models and the Langmuir isotherm model fitted well with the data obtained. The removal mechanism may include both physical adsorption of U (VI) on the surface or inside of core–shell nZVI@Alg–Ca beads and subsequent reduction of U (VI) to U (IV). Therefore, the core–shell nZVI@Alg–Ca beads would have an application prospect in effective removal of U (VI) contamination from aqueous solution.