Issue 32, 2021

Development of a schwarzite-based moving bed 3D printed water treatment system for nanoplastic remediation

Abstract

The impact of micro and nanoplastic debris on our aquatic ecosystem is among the most prominent environmental challenges we face today. In addition, nanoplastics create significant concern for environmentalists because of their toxicity and difficulty in separation and removal. Here we report the development of a 3D printed moving bed water filter (M-3DPWF), which can perform as an efficient nanoplastic scavenger. The enhanced separation of the nanoplastics happens due to the creation of a charged filter material that traps the more surface charged nanoparticles selectively. Synthetic contaminated water from polycarbonate waste has been tested with the filter, and enhanced nanoplastic removal has been achieved. The proposed filtration mechanism of surface-charge based water cleaning is further validated using density function theory (semi-empirical) based simulation. The filter has also shown good structural and mechanical stability in both static and dynamic water conditions. The field suitability of the novel treatment system has also been confirmed using water from various sources, such as sea, river, and pond. Our results suggest that the newly developed water filter can be used for the removal of floating nanoparticles in water as a robust advanced treatment system.

Graphical abstract: Development of a schwarzite-based moving bed 3D printed water treatment system for nanoplastic remediation

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
20 apr 2021
Accepted
20 may 2021
First published
01 iyn 2021
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

RSC Adv., 2021,11, 19788-19796

Development of a schwarzite-based moving bed 3D printed water treatment system for nanoplastic remediation

B. Gupta, R. S. Ambekar, R. M. Tromer, P. S. Ghosal, R. Sinha, A. Majumder, P. Kumbhakar, P. M. Ajayan, D. S. Galvao, A. K. Gupta and C. S. Tiwary, RSC Adv., 2021, 11, 19788 DOI: 10.1039/D1RA03097C

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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