3. Results and discussions
3.1. Characterization of the sorbents
The FTIR spectra of the MOSB were observed in the range
400–4000 cm−1. It displayed a number of peaks as shown in Table 1,
indicating the complex nature of the adsorbent. It is clear that the
carboxylic acid and hydroxyl groups present play a major role in the
removal of heavy metal ions as observed from the significant reduction
in the intensity or shiftin their intensity peaks formetal-loaded
MOSB as shown in Table 1. The results reported agree with the findings
of Sharma et al. [19] using shelled M. oleifera Lam seed powder
in the removal of cadmium (Cd) from aqueous system as the FTIR
spectrometry highlighted amino acid–Cd interactions responsible
for sorption phenomenon. The findings opened up new avenues
in the removal of toxic metals by shelled M. oleifera seeds from
water bodies as low cost, domestic and environmentally friendly
safe technology.
The observed characteristic IR frequency peaks of the synthesized
ligand are shown in Table 2. Systematic FTIR studies of both
adsorbents are required in order to understand the mechanisms of
metal removal.