The main goal of this project was to develop a method to remove metal ion contaminants from wastewater in remote locations using locally sourced materials. In order to accomplish this, inexpensive visual tests for metal ion concentrations were developed by forming highly insoluble colored metal ion precipitates. Samples of synthetic wastewater were micropipetted onto filter paper that was pretreated with a fixative reagent. Once dry, the test strips were developed using the appropriate reactive ion, producing colored spots whose sizes were proportional to the initial metal ion concentration. The pretreated paper test strips detected metal ion concentrations as low as 50 μM. Similar test strips using color-intensity to estimate metal ion concentration were not as reliable. The development of these test strips allowed for the simple and efficient exploration of various plant-based adsorbent materials for their ability to remove metal ions from water. This study looked at “waste” plant-materials, such as treated sawdust, brown rot, and white rot wood, which are widely available. It was found that these materials are comparable to black tea leaves in their ability to remove Pb2+ and Ni2+ contaminants from water; however, they are much more abundant in remote locations.

Using paper test strips to evaluate the effectiveness of “waste” plant-material to remove metal ions from water

Macromolecular Chemistry: The Second Century

[Author Benefits](https://scimeetings.acs.org/?utm_source=pubs_content_marketing&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=0320_MCF_NPI_Launch_Spring_Homepage&ref=pubs_content_marketing)

[How to use SciMeetings](https://storage.googleapis.com/dl.morressier.com/acs/SciMeetings-ACSSpring2020-HowToGuide_M3020-Final.pdf)

[Frequently Asked Questions](https://storage.googleapis.com/dl.morressier.com/acs/SciMtng_ACSNMSp2020_FAQ_M3120_Final.pdf)

ACS Spring 2020 National Meeting & Expo

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