Pak-Australian researchers develop ‘magnetic powder’ to remove microplastics from water
KARACHI: A group of scientists from Pakistan and Australia has created powder-based adsorbents that may rapidly remove microplastics and other impurities from wastewater.
The substance, which appears to be regular powder, is actually composed of tiny, ferromagnetic “nanopillard structures.” The meticulously crafted particles are made up of two sheets of metal-organic framework (MOF), which are two dimensional, with various iron oxide nanopillars encased in carbon sandwiched in between.
The layout creates a vast surface area of 749.7 m2/g and numerous traps that adhere to even the smallest water particles.
“Existing methods could take days to remove microplastics from water, while our cheap and sustainable invention achieves better results in just one hour,” said the lead researcher, Professor Nicky Esthtiaghi in a statement published by Australia’s RMIT University.
Additionally, it has the ability to remove microplastics that are 1,000 times smaller than those that the most modern treatment facilities can now identify. Contrarily, traditional purifying methods require days to complete, and even only capture plastic particles of a few millimeters, tinier microplastics were unable to be charged before this invention.
The nano-pillar-shaped material does not generate any additional secondary pollutants throughout the entire process, according to the designer and co-lead researcher Dr. Nasir Mahmood. The miracle powder was created by the first author and Ph.D. student Muhammad Haris while conducting doctoral research.
The Chemical Engineering Journal has published the work of the group.
A magnet is then used to extract all of the nanopillar structures and the microplastic particles they have adsorbed after the powder has been stirred around in the wastewater for a brief period of time.
How does it work?
Consider the two-dimensional metal-organic framework (MOF) as a square slice of bread on a microscopic scale. Haris has added some pillars that resemble a structure built of iron oxide. Then he adds another slice to the top of the pillars, making it look like a multi-story parking lot with columns supporting the roof. It has a substantial surface area while having relatively little structure. The structure collects unseen plastic particles and other pollutants as wastewater flows past it.
The Earth has become a plastic planet as a result of our “use and throws away” manner of life, creating a new global dilemma. Whales are being killed by visible plastic.
Whales and turtles are being killed by visible plastic in the oceans, but 4.8 to 12.7 million tonnes of invisible plastic enter the sea each year, harming marine life just as much. From Antarctica to the most isolated deserts, as well as in animal meat and human milk, microplastics have been discovered, but the biological impacts are yet unknown. Because these particles take hundreds of years to dissolve if left untreated, the nanopillared structures are very promising for capturing them.
Pak-Australian researchers develop ‘magnetic powder’ to remove microplastics from water
“We tested the powder on tainted water samples and it adsorbed 100 percent particles in just 60 minutes. Next, a magnet is used to remove all the nanopillared structures with microplastics they have adsorbed because the swirling MOF-based nanopillars are magnetic in nature and are easily attracted to any magnet for further removal.
“Moreover, the powder (nanopillared tiny structures) could be reused by up to six times,” Dr. Haris told.
The cheap and easy-to-use structures also suck all the particles of methylene blue in water which had been added to represent common dissolved pollutants.
“We use 3 grams of powder to clean one gram of dissolved plastic in one litre,” the researcher said, adding that the adsorbent’s efficacy was confirmed by imaging and other technique like advanced microscopy.
“The most amazing part of the invention is that its raw material is actually bio-waste… we have applied for the patent and will upscale the process to commercial level soon,” said Haris.
