South Korean researchers have created a state-of-the-art water filtration device to swiftly and effectively remove microplastics. While reasonably priced, the polymer utilised has good photothermal and adsorption characteristics.
In one trial, in just 10 seconds, more than 99.9% of the pollutants were removed from the water.
Microplastics are ubiquitous and have made their way into the human food chain. While some conventional carbon-based filters may remove microplastics, they have drawbacks, including a slow adsorption rate and inefficient energy use.
According to Professor Park Chi-Young of the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) in Korea, “the technology is unparalleled with the world’s highest purification efficiency, removing more than 99.9% of phenolic microplastics and volatile organic compound (VOC) contaminants in water at ultra-high speeds.”
The ground-breaking methodology by the Korean team consumes less energy, which makes it perfect for solar-powered applications. This is especially helpful for underdeveloped nations with erratic power supplies.
The researchers pointed out that the sluggish adsorption rate and high heat energy needed for recycling are drawbacks of carbon-based porous materials employing current adsorption processes.
It has been challenging to produce materials that concurrently fulfil outstanding recyclability, high efficiency, inexpensive raw material efficiency, and industrialization potential. The development of several materials has aided pollutant removal efficiency.
By reacting with a cheap and efficient precursor, the researchers created a porous polymer with good adsorption performance and photothermal characteristics. A material with quick micropollutant adsorption is now possible thanks to new technology in the aquatic environment.
“We hope that it will be a universal technology with tremendous economic efficiency that can purify contaminated water and supply drinking water even in areas where there is no power supply,” Chi-Young said in a statement.
The polymer’s ability to be recycled and reused several times without losing performance was validated through studies, according to the researchers.
Through the new polymer’s capacity to comprehensively absorb light and transform that absorbed light into heat, the researchers created a water treatment membrane capable of evaporating water utilising solar energy as the driving force. It has been demonstrated that the oxidised polymer-coated water treatment membrane can remove phenolic impurities using sunlight.
