Preparation of CoFe2O4-CMC and its adsorption mechanism study toward Pb(II)

• The dispersion of CoFe 2 O 4 was improved by the CMC interface modification. • The q e of CoFe 2 O 4 -CMC0.5 with particle size of 10.5 nm was 119.3 mg/g. • Adsorption mechanism included intermolecular interaction and coordination. The heavy metal Pb(II) is highly toxic, and it is very important for its separation and collection to improve water quality. To alleviate the phenomenon of agglomeration and inactivation, the highly dispersible composite materials (CoFe 2 O 4 -CMC) were prepared by modifying super-paramagnetic CoFe 2 O 4 using carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) in this paper. The adsorption capacity of CoFe 2 O 4 -CMC0.5 for Pb(II) was 119.3 mg/g. Dynamic fitting results showed that the adsorption process included physical adsorption of intermolecular force and chemical adsorption of coordination; The results of thermodynamic study showed that the adsorption process was endothermic. Compared with CoFe 2 O 4 , the addition of CMC improved the dispersibility and adsorption performance, providing a new idea for environmental water quality remediation.