This invention concerns the synthesis of a novel adsorbent material having outstanding performance in terms of As removal. This material could be employed in developing new filtration systems for water purification from Arsenic pollutant.
| Patent title | N-alkyl-D-glucamine based macroporous polymeric cryogel for sequestering and/or removing toxic contaminants |
|---|---|
| Thematic area | Bioeconomy, Agriculture and Environment |
| Ownership | CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE, ALMA MATER STUDIORUM - UNIVERSITA' DI BOLOGNA |
| Inventors | Daniele Caretti, Stefano Scurti, VITTORIO PRIVITERA, FRANCESCA CUNSOLO, SABRINA CAROLA CARROCCIO, TOMMASO MECCA |
| Protection | Italy, Europe, USA, China |
| Licensing status | Available for development agreements, option, license and other exploitation agreements |
| Keywords | Polymeric cryogel, Microporous polymeric materials, Water treatment, Selective removal of Arsenic |
| Filed on | 19 July 2019 |
Arsenic (As) ranks first in the top twenty hazardous heavy metals. Contamination of drinking water by As has affected the health of more than one 150 million people all over the world and, also in Italy, the As issue is of relevant importance especially in Lazio region where the As pollution causes serious problems to the drinking water.
Different strategies have been adopted to remove As from the water sources including oxidation/precipitation, coagulation and ion exchange. Although these chemical methods are simple, they present disadvantages associated with the enormous quantity of toxic sludge, not easily disposable, that is generated during treatments. Thus, there is a real need to find new methods to purify water from As, preferably at reasonable costs, energy saving and low environmental impact. Between the described treatments, the adsorption technique, which exploits the property of some solids to remove pollutants from gases or liquids, deserves a separate description. This process is widely used because it has significant advantages such as operational simplicity, the absence of harmful by-products and low operating and maintenance costs, and has proved to be the most economical and efficient technique for removing even small traces of arsenic from water. The currently most used adsorbents are alumina, activated carbon, iron oxides, zeolites and polymer based materials. The use of the latter is advantageous both in terms of costs and management and maintenance.
The patent regards a macroporous polymeric material containing N-methyl-D-glucamine moieties previously proposed as Arsenic absorber. The innovation of the invention is related to the polymerization process carried out lower temperatures with respect conventional methods. This procedure involves the solvent crystal formation acting as porogens during the polymerization process. The further heating of the mixture promote the solvent melting and the formation of a sponge-like structure characterized by a high porosity, mechanical stability as well as Arsenic absorbtion properties.
Applications:
- new filtering systems for the purification of drinking water;
- treatment of industrial wastewater.
Advantages:
- environmentally sustainable polymerization;
- greater efficiency;
- greater sequestering speed.
Paper accepted for publication:
Chemical Engineering Journal, vol. 399 (1 nov 2020)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/chemical-engineering-journal/vol/399/suppl/C