Adsorption has emerged as a promising and cost-effective water treatment method. Unfortunately, large-scale adsorption technologies have failed to evolve as quickly as new nanomaterials have been discovered, and much of the industry still heavily relies on activated carbon and ion exchange resins. Given an ever-expanding list of contaminants and an increasing demand for clean water, an evolution of water treatment technology utilizing new materials is needed. Nanoadsorbents featuring high surface areas, strong sorption, and short intraparticle diffusion distances have the potential to revolutionize water treatment yet are difficult to implement in conventional packed-bed applications. A new biomimetic system has shown remarkable removal with its simple design. In bench-scale experiments, greater than 90% of heavy metals such as lead and arsenic have been removed using metal oxide nanoadsorbents – manganese oxide and ferrihydrite – within three hours at environmental conditions. This system can also be adapted to remove a variety of contaminants using other nanoscale and 2D adsorbents. With efficient, low-cost manufacturing of the nanoadsorbents, this approach paves a path for a scalable and economical industrial treatment process. Current work focuses on evolving system design and overcoming technical challenges. Improvements promise to substantially increase removal efficiency and shorten treatment duration.

Novel biomimetic system for the application of nanomaterials in water treatment: Implications and challenges

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

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ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.