Graphene oxide nanocomposite magnetic microbeads for the remediation of positively charged aromatic compounds

Integrating graphene as an inorganic nanostructure within a hydrogel matrix enables the creation of a unique hybrid composite combining the peculiar chemical and physical properties of graphene with the high porosity and stability of hydrogels as for example agarose gel. As a consequence, the resulting material forms a double-network system providing advantages deriving from both the components. In this study, we present the synthesis of novel magnetic porous agarose-based graphene oxide microbeads for the adsorption and separation of positively charged aromatic molecules. The hydrogel-based gra- phene oxide beads revealed an ultrafast adsorption kinetics for positively charged aromatic dyes. We tested this material for the purification of fluorescent-tagged biomolecules. In addition, reduced gra- phene oxide microbeads were decorated with palladium nanoparticles, showing a high catalytic activity towards the reduction of dyes by sodium borohydride. Our results show that magnetic agarose based gra- phene microbeads with enhanced physical–chemical properties can be used for several biochemical applications