Selective removal of radioactive iodine from water using reusable Fe@Pt adsorbents

Environmental damage from serious nuclear accidents should be urgently restored, which needs the removal of radioactive species. Radioactive iodine isotopes are particularly problematic for human health because they are released in large amounts and retain radioactivity for a substantial time. Herein, we prepare platinum-coated iron nanoparticles ([email protected]) as a highly selective and reusable adsorbent for iodine species, i.e., iodide (I−), iodine (I2), and methyl iodide (CH3I). [email protected] selectively separates iodine species from seawater and groundwater with a removal efficiency ≥ 99.8%. The maximum adsorption capacity for the iodine atom of all three iodine species was determined to be 25 mg/g. The magnetic properties of [email protected] allow for the facile recovery and reuse of [email protected], which remains stable with high efficiency (97.5%) over 100 uses without…