Cyclodextrin polyurethanes polymerised with carbon nanotubes for the removal of organic pollutants in water

Abstract

Organic compounds are some of the major pollutants of water worldwide. They can be toxic or carcinogenic even at low concentrations. The non-reactivity of these species makes it difficult to remove them from water, particularly when present at concentration levels of nanograms per litre (ng·ℓ -1 ) or lower. Reasonably inexpensive yet effective methods for the removal of these organic pollutants to below ppb levels are therefore required.Insoluble cyclodextrin polyurethanes have demonstrated the ability to remove organic species from water at concentration levels of nanograms per litre. Carbon nanotubes have also been reported to efficiently adsorb some organic molecules such as dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzo-furans. However, these nanotubes are currently too expensive to be used on their own in water treatment.An investigation into the use of cross-linked cyclodextrin polyurethanes copolymerised with functionalised multiwalled carbon nanotubes as adsorbents for organic pollutants has yielded very useful results which may have an impact in future water treatment applications.

Synthesis and Characterization of β‐Cyclodextrin Nanosponge and Its Application for the Removal of p‐Nitrophenol from Water

“…Zeolites also exhibit a low affinity for organic compounds, and reverse osmosis requires high pressure; therefore, reverse osmosis is considered energy‐inefficient. Moreover, it does not remove all of the small molecules from water because the membranes are not perfectly semipermeable . Thus, new water treatment processes to remove these organic pollutants are required.…”

Short communication: Cyclodextrin nanosponges in the removal of organic matter to produce water for power generation

“…Herein, we report on the effectiveness of cyclodextrin polymers, synthesised in our laboratories Li and Ma, 2000), in the removal of organic pollutants from water sampled at a specific power station. The effectiveness of these water-insoluble cyclodextrin polymers in the removal of organic species from water present in concentration levels as low as ng/ℓ has been previously reported (Salipira et al, 2008;Mamba et al, 2007).…”

Effect of Multi-Wall Carbon Nanotubes on the Microhardness of the Tooth Enamel

“…Functionalisation of Commercial Carbon Nano Tubes (17). One gram MWCNTs was transferred into a mixture of nitric acid (10 cm3) and sulphuric acid (30cm3).…”