Decolorization of azo dye solution by Fe–Mo–Si–B amorphous alloy

The authors recently find that (Fe0.99Mo0.01)78Si9B13 glassy ribbons have a prominent effect on the decolorization of azo dyes. Direct Blue 2B solution of 200 mg/L were found to be decolorized by the ribbons nearly completely within 30 min. Decolorization mechanism was discussed briefly, and kinetic analyses based on the experimental data elucidated that the decolorizaiton process could be described by a pseudo-first-order kinetic model. Recycled experiments proved that the ribbons could be reused at least four times without obvious decay of decolorization efficiency. Combined with low manufacturing cost of producing Fe-based glassy ribbons, this new finding seems attractive, valuable and promising for industrial applications in the future.