Fabrication of Versatile Nanomaterials for Water Remediation that will Pave Way for State-of-the-art Water Purification Technologies

Identifying the Issue

• As per WHO, water contamination by heavy metal ions, poses enormous threat to both the environment and human health as they are non-biodegradable and highly toxic by nature
• Their presence in high concentration in wastewater and in low concentration in ground waters of industrial regions demands efficient water remediation techniques

Objective of the Research

• Design and development of versatile Nano adsorbent, suitable for simultaneous removal of multiple cationic and anionic contaminants from water with rapid and high removal efficiency at various pH conditions of source water which makes it a viable solution for waste water and groundwater remediation
• The developed Nano adsorbent could simultaneously remove Pb(II), Hg(II), As(V), As(III) and Cr(VI) in less than two minutes of its contact in water with high efficiency at all pH conditions of source water

Who should read this?

• Global water treatment product manufacturers
• The industrial wastewater is a major source of a variety of highly toxic water contaminants, which includes heavy metal ionic contaminants. Therefore, these industries can use the material for treating the wastewater before releasing it into the water bodies
• Government bodies and NGOs concerned with providing safe water
• Researchers working on water remediation and nanomaterials for different applications

Solution

Presence of heavy metal ionic contaminants in water is a matter of global concern, owing to their disastrous impact on human health and environment. Cerium intercalated, ceria decorated titanate nanotubes (CCTNT) was developed for efficient adsorption of toxic heavy metal ions, lead, mercury, arsenate, arsenite and dichromate from water. The material properties of CCTNT were thoroughly studied using various characterization tools. CCTNT, is a nanocomposite of ceria and titanate nanotubes with a high specific surface area. The morphology is a blend of nanotubes of the titanate phase decorated with ceria nanoparticles. The results obtained from batch adsorption experiments indicated that CCTNT, with a wide pH window for adsorption of heavy metal ions, is applicable for both groundwater and wastewater remediation. In addition, it exhibited ultrafast adsorption of all five contaminants using a low adsorbent dosage. The maximum adsorption capacities of the adsorbent were calculated to be 66.76, 97.18, 189.59, 199.80, 288.23 mg/g respectively for the removal of Cr(VI),Pb(II),As(V), Hg(II) and As(III) from water. CCTNT is further suitable for highly efficient and simultaneous removal of all five heavy metal ions. These attractive properties make CCTNT a superior material for adsorption of heavy metal ions from water.

Key Features and Benefits

• CCTNT is mesoporous with high surface area, dense OH groups and multivalent cations
• CCTNT could simultaneously adsorb Pb(II), Hg(II), As(V), As(III) and Cr(VI) from water with high efficiency and ultrafast kinetics
• The wide pH window of adsorption in CCTNT makes it suitable for groundwater and wastewater
• Applicable for removal of both low and high concentrations of heavy metal ions

Impact

• The developed material is a viable solution for remediation of heavy metal ions from water
• Its attractive adsorption properties such as its high efficiency at all pH conditions makes it suitable for any kind of water source
• Simultaneous removal of contaminants to WHO permissible limits with dosage of as low as 1 g/L within two minutes of its contact with water enables it to be a suitable material for developing adsorption based water purification technology

Team

• Anjana Biswas
• B. P. Chandra
• Dr. (Mrs.) C Prathibha

Paper Published in: Applied Surface Science (Elsevier)

Title of paper: Highly efficient and simultaneous remediation of heavy metal ions (Pb(II), Hg(II), As(V), As(III) and Cr(VI)) from water using Ce intercalated and ceria decorated titanate nanotubes

Read Paper Here: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2022.155841