La-EDTA-Fe3O4 was prepared by a chemical co-precipitation method. The magnetic composite was characterized by transmission
electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Furthermore, the adsorption
properties of La-EDTA-Fe3O4 toward phosphate in water were investigated. The uptake rate of phosphate in water by La-EDTA-Fe3O4
was 3–1000 times than that of EDTA-Fe3O4, and reached 97.8% at 7 hr. The adsorption process agreed well with the Freundlich
model and kinetics studies showed that the adsorption of phosphate proceeds according to pseudo second-order adsorption kinetics.
The maximum removal rate was achieved at pH 6.0–7.0. The La-EDTA-Fe3O4 had good adsorption properties and could be separated
well from aqueous solution by a permanent magnet. Therefore, this nanomaterial has potential application for the removal of phosphate
from large water bodies.