Nano-enabled 3D-Printed Structures for Water Treatment

Abstract

Water scarcity caused by climate change has become a growing global concern, affecting the quality of life of billions of people. An effective approach to overcoming the challenges posed by water scarcity is to integrate nanotechnology into water infrastructure. Nanomaterials have multifunctional properties that can improve the efficiency of water treatment plants and remove both legacy and emerging contaminants with less energy consumption, increased capacity, and enhanced flexibility. However, incorporating nanomaterials into the existing water treatment infrastructure may have drawbacks such as leaching of nanomaterials into treated water, leading to a decreased overall efficiency. Various strategies have been proposed for the fabrication of nanomaterials in higher dimensions, with three-dimensional (3D) printing techniques being particularly notable due to their durability, material flexibility, and ease of fabrication. In this review, we focus on 3D-printed nanomaterials for water treatment applications. Possible enhancement pathways of conventional water treatment methods using 3D printing as well as different strategies for nano-enabling 3D-printed structures have been critically discussed. We conclude by summarizing the challenges associated with utilizing 3D printing in environmental applications, especially water treatment, and providing future directions.