A novel core-shell magnetic nano-sorbent with surface molecularly-imprinted polymer coating was prepared via a sol-gel process. Methyltrimethoxysilane and 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane were used as functional monomers, tetraethyl orthosilicate as cross-linker, and Al3+ as dopant to generate Lewis acid sites in the silica matrix for the metal coordinate interactions with the template dimetridazole (DMZ). The ratios of the monomers, the dopant, and the cross-linker, were optimised by a OA9 (34) orthogonal array design. The resultant sorbent was characterised by scanning electron microscopy, trans...
