Synthesis and Characterization of Prussian Blue and Oxide Red Pigments from Metal Waste

Abstract:

In fulfilling its pigment material needs for industrial purposes, Indonesia still relies on imports, whose value continues to rise. This shows that the abundance of local raw materials has not been utilized optimally. Iron, as one of the pigment materials, can be obtained from the refining of metal waste. One of the metal wastes with a high Fe content (up to 97.11% w/w) is used in the manufacture of dishwashing wire. The manufacture of pigments from metal waste has the potential for sales value and commercial-scale development. The pigments synthesized are Prussian blue (iron (III) ferrocyanide or Fe₄[Fe(CN)₆]₃) and oxide red (iron (III) oxide or Fe₂O₃). Iron recovery is carried out using the leaching method with acids, specifically HCl and H₂SO₄. After the iron is dissolved in the acid and the dregs are filtered, the process continues with the oxidation stage, using H₂O₂ as the oxidizing agent. The precipitation stage is carried out using NaOH and K₃Fe(CN)₆. After undergoing filtration and washing, the pigment is heated in an oven until a crystalline powder is obtained. Prussian blue and oxide red pigments were successfully synthesized, with coloring tending towards a Prussian blue hue. This is because the synthesized Prussian blue is more easily dispersed in CMC solution than the oxide red pigment. Several samples were found to change their tendency to oxidize red after sieving >90 mesh, indicating the influence of grain size on pigment mixing. FTIR testing revealed the presence of CN, Fe-O, and Fe-CN functional groups, confirming the presence of these groups in the pigment. This finding was reinforced by EDX testing, which showed the presence of Fe, C, N, and O atoms. From the SEM test of the pigment sieving >90 mesh, irregular angular crystal particles were produced with a size of 0.9-23.6 µm.

• Periodical: Advanced Materials Research (Volume 1187)
• Pages: 145-156
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/p-Oo61TU
• Online since: February 2026
• Authors: Esa Nur Shohih*, Nuril Mina Apdhila, Muhammad Iqbal Hakim
• Keywords: Metal Waste, Oxide Red, Pigment, Prussian Blue

References

[1] Statistic Indonesia (Badan Pusat Statistik, BPS), "Iron Oxides and Hydroxides Import Data," [Online], Available: https://www.bps.go.id/id/exim, [Accessed: Apr. 25, 2025, 08:40 PM].

[2] M. N. Al Chabib, "Pengaruh lama kalsinasi pada sintesis senyawa pigmen hematit (α-Fe2O3) dari limbah industri kerajinan besi," 2017.

DOI: 10.18860/al.v7i2.4928

[3] Bilalodin, Irayani Z., Sehah, Sugito Sugito, "Sintesis dan karakterisasi pigmen warna hitam, merah dan kuning berbahan dasar pasir besi synthesis and characterization of black, red and yellow pigment made from iron sands", Molekul, 10(2) 2015.

DOI: 10.20884/1.jm.2015.10.2.5

[4] R. Awaliah, S. Yesfisari, F. Firdaus, and W. Wahab, "Studi Pengolahan Bijih Mangan Desa Kumbewaha, Kabupaten Buton Dengan Metode Hidrometalurgi Dalam Suasana Asam", Journal of Applied Geoscience and Engineering, vol. 2, no. 1, p.26–35, 2023.

[5] M.I. Muharrom, "Analisis Pengaruh Variasi Larutan Asam (HNO3, H2SO4, HCl) terhadap proses ekstraksi lithium pada lumpur sidoarjo menggunakan metode hidrometalurgi", Surabaya, Disertasi ITS, 2018.

[6] A., L.M.S., D.B., G.A., dan A. S. Lassoued and M. S. Lassoued, "Synthesis, Structural, Optical and Morphological Characterization of  Hematite Through the Precipitation Method: Effect of Varying the Nature of  the Base", J Mol Struct, vol. 1141, no. 13, 2017.

DOI: 10.1016/j.molstruc.2017.03.077

[7] A. F. Khalamudilah, D. Suhendar, and Asep Supriadin, "Sintesis dan karakterisasi pigmen merah besi (III) oksida dari serbuk besi limbah bubut logam", 2017.

DOI: 10.15575/ak.v4i1.5083

[8] M. Wahyuni and S. Aini, "Sifat magnetik dan ukuran partikel magnetik serta komposisi material pasir besi pantai kata pariaman sumatera barat di sintesa dengan iron sand separator dan ball milling",Journal Online of Physics, vol. 3, no. 2, p.11–14, Nov. (2018)

DOI: 10.22437/jop.v3i2.5730

[9] N. Sudirman, "Optimization of FeSO 4 Molarity for Synthesis of Prussian Blue Pigment from Iron Sand from Sunur Beach Estuary, Pariaman", Jurnal Akta Kimia Indonesia, vol. 15, p.21–25, 2008.

DOI: 10.20956/ica.v15i2.20087

[10] I. G. M. Karma, "Determination and Measurement of Color Dissimilarity", International Journal of Engineering and Emerging Technology, vol. 5(1), p.67, Jul. 2020.

[11] H. J. Lee, J. W. Shim, J. J. Lee, and W. J. Lee, "The encapsulation of natural organic dyes on TiO2 for photochromism control", Int J Mol Sci, vol. 24 (9), 2023.

DOI: 10.3390/ijms24097860

[12] I. Petroviciu, I. Teodorescu, F. Albu, M. Virgolici, E. Nagoda, and A. Medvedovici, "Dyes and biological sources in nineteenth to twentieth century ethnographic textiles from Transylvania, Romania", Herit Sci, vol. 7(1), Dec. 2019.

DOI: 10.1186/s40494-019-0255-0

[13] A.M. Nawar and A.A. Alzharani, "Impedance spectroscopy and conduction mechanism analysis of bulk nanostructure Prussian blue pellets", Material Chemistry and Physics, 306, 2023.

DOI: 10.1016/j.matchemphys.2023.128000

[14] S. Duhan and S. Devi, "Synthesis and Structural Characterization of Iron Oxide-silica Nanocomposites Prepared by the Sol-Gel Method", International Journal of Electronic Engineering, vol. 2 (1), 2010.