The blending effect of natural polysaccharides with nano-zirconia towards the removal of fluoride and arsenate from water.

Nano-zirconia (ZO) was synthesized using a microwave-assisted one-pot precipitation route. Two biopolymers, chitosan (CTS) and carboxymethyl cellulose were blended with ZO at different w/w ratios. The formulation with 30% w/w chitosan (ZO-CTS) was found to give enhanced uptake of F- and As(V). ZO and the most effective ZO-CTS system were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These confirmed the formation of a composite system containing nanoparticles of 50 nm in size, in which ZO was present in the amorphous form. It was observed that the combination of ZO with CTS improved the F- and As(V) adsorption capacity most notably at pH 5.5. Fluoride adsorption by ZO-CTS followed the Freundlich isotherm model, with an adsorption capacity of 120 mg g-1. Adsorption of As(V) by ZO-CTS could be fitted with both the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models and was found to have a capacity of 14.8 mg g-1. Gravity filtration studies conducted for groundwater levels indicated the effectiveness of ZO-CTS in adsorbing As(V) and F- at a pH of 5.5. The ability of the ZO-CTS in removing Cd(II) and Pb(II) was also investigated, and no such enhancement was observed, and found the neat ZO was the most potent sorbent here.

Structure-Activity Relationship of Lanthanide-Incorporated Nano-Hydroxyapatite for the Adsorption of Fluoride and Lead.

The growing demand for water purification provided the initial momentum to produce lanthanide-incorporated nano-hydroxyapatite (HAP) such as HAP·CeO2, HAP·CeO2·La(OH)3 (2:1), and HAP·CeO2·La(OH)3 (3:2). These materials open avenues to remove fluoride and lead ions from contaminated water bodies effectively. Composites of HAP containing CeO2 and La(OH)3 were prepared using in situ wet precipitation of HAP, followed by the addition of Ce(SO4)2 and La(NO3)3 into the same reaction mixture. The resultant solids were tested for the removal of fluoride and lead ions from contaminated water. It was found that the composite HAP·CeO2 shows fluoride and lead ion removal capacities of 185 and 416 mg/g, respectively. The fluoride removal capacity of the composite was improved when La(OH)3 was incorporated and it was observed that the composite HAP·CeO2·La(OH)3 (3:2) has the highest recorded fluoride removal capacity of 625 mg/g. The materials were characterized using scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX) spectrometry, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrometry, X-ray powder diffractometry (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis. Analysis of results showed that Ce and La are incorporated in the HAP matrix. Results of kinetic and leaching analyses indicated a chemisorptive behavior during fluoride and lead ion adsorption by the composites; meanwhile, the thermodynamic profile shows a high degree of feasibility for fluoride and lead adsorption.

Biopolymer-Based Nanohydroxyapatite Composites for the Removal of Fluoride, Lead, Cadmium, and Arsenic from Water.

In this study, hydroxyapatite (HAP) nanocomposites were prepared with chitosan (HAP-CTS), carboxymethyl cellulose (HAP-CMC), alginate (HAP-ALG), and gelatin (HAP-GEL) using a simple wet chemical in situ precipitation method. The synthesized materials were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area analysis, and thermogravimetric analysis. This revealed the successful synthesis of composites with varied morphologies. The adsorption abilities of the materials toward Pb(II), Cd(II), F-, and As(V) were explored, and HAP-CTS was found to have versatile adsorption properties for all of the ions, across a wide range of concentrations and pH values, and in the presence of common ions found in groundwater. Additionally, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirmed the affinity of HAP-CTS toward multi-ion mixture containing all four ions. HAP-CTS was hence engineered into a more user-friendly form, which can be used to form filters through its combination with cotton and granular activated carbon. A gravity filtration study indicates that the powder form of HAP-CTS is the best sorbent, with the highest breakthrough capacity of 3000, 3000, 2600, and 2000 mL/g for Pb(II), Cd(II), As(V), and F-, respectively. Hence, we propose that HAP-CTS could be a versatile sorbent material for use in water purification.

Improved nanocomposite of montmorillonite and hydroxyapatite for defluoridation of water.

A novel hydroxyapatite montmorillonite (HAP-MMT) nanocomposite system was synthesized using a simple wet chemical in situ precipitation method. Neat nano hydroxyapatite (HAP) was also synthesized for comparison. The characterization of the materials was carried out using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) isotherms to study the functional groups, morphology, crystallinity and the surface area respectively. Batch adsorption studies and kinetic studies on fluoride adsorption were conducted for the HAP-MMT system and for neat HAP. The effect of parameters such as contact time, pH, initial concentration, temperature, and thermodynamic parameters and the effect of coexisting ions on fluoride adsorption by HAP-MMT were studied. Results of the isotherm experiments were fitted to four adsorption isotherm models namely Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin and Dubinin Radushkevich. Fluoride adsorption over HAP-MMT fitted to the Freundlich adsorption isotherm model and showed more than two-fold improved adsorption capacity (16.7 mg g-1) compared to neat HAP. The best-fitting kinetic model for both adsorbents was found to be pseudo second order. Calculated thermodynamic parameters indicated that the fluoride adsorption by HAP-MMT is more favorable compared to that on HAP within the temperature range of 27 °C-60 °C. Improved fluoride adsorption by HAP-MMT is attributed to the exfoliated nature of HAP-MMT. Gravity filtration studies carried out using a 1.5 ppm fluoride solution, which is closer to the ground water fluoride concentrations of Chronic Kidney Disease of unknown etiology (CKDu) affected areas in Sri Lanka, resulted in a 1600 ml g-1 break through volume indicating the potential of HAP-MMT to be used in real applications.

Polyaniline/palladium nanohybrids for moisture and hydrogen detection.

Palladium nanoparticles display fascinating electronic, optical and catalytic properties, thus they can be used for various applications such as sensor fabrication. Conducting polymers such as polyaniline have also been widely used in sensor technology due to its cost effectiveness, versatility, and ease of synthesis. In this research, attention was given to unify the exceptional properties of these two materials and construct palladium nanoparticle coated polyaniline films to detect hydrogen and moisture. Electrochemical polymerization of aniline was carried out on gold sputtered epoxy resin boards. Polyaniline film was generated across a gap of 0.2 mm created by a scratch made on the gold coating prior to electrochemical polymerization. A palladium nanoparticle dispersion was prepared using sonochemical reduction method and coated on to polyaniline film using drop-drying technique. Polyaniline only films were also fabricated for comparative analysis. Sensitivity of films towards humidity and hydrogen was evaluated using impedance spectroscopy in the presence of the respective species. According to the results, polyaniline films exhibited an impedance drop in the presence of humidity and the response was significantly improved once palladium nanoparticles were incorporated. Interestingly, polyaniline only films did not respond to hydrogen. Nevertheless, palladium nanoparticle coated polyaniline films exhibited remarkable response towards hydrogen.

Contribution of dissolved sulfates and sulfites in hydrogen sulfide emission from stagnant water bodies in Sri Lanka.

Accumulation of sulfur-containing compounds and their bacterial mediated reductions have led to the emission of pungent odors from stagnant water bodies. This study is focused on the contribution of inorganic sulfur compounds in the emission of hydrogen sulfide. The measured dissolved oxygen levels have demonstrated good negative correlations with the dissolved sulfide levels implying the oxygen deficiency is the key for the reduction of sulfate ion and sulfite ion to sulfide ion. Particularly, the dissolved molar fractions of sulfide from the total dissolved sulfur compounds (sulfates, sulfites and sulfides) have a very good correlation with the dissolved oxygen for the stagnant water bodies except the artificially aerated prawn farms. For the stagnant water bodies with significant correlations, linear regressions are reported for them to be utilized in estimating one component of the regression from the measurement of the other. The measured data were further utilized to estimate the levels of hydrogen sulfide gas. The pH of the water bodies has confined much of the dissolved sulfides in the form of bisulfide ion and they can be easily escaped to the atmosphere upon acidification due to industrial discharges and/or acidic precipitations. The estimated levels of hydrogen sulfide just above the water surface were plotted for the most polluted stagnant water body in Sri Lanka for the pH range of 5-10 and temperature range of 25-35 degrees C.

Cyclohexane oxidation and carbon deposition over metal oxide catalysts.

Catalytic activity of V, Mn, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mo, Zr and Ce oxides over an alpha-alumina support was evaluated for cyclohexane oxidation under oxygen deficient conditions in order to understand the relation between carbon deposition and catalytic activity/selectivity. Carbon formation over the catalysts during the oxidation reaction was measured by means of Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Catalysts Mn/Al2O3 and Ce/Al2O3, which are selective for deep oxidation of cyclohexane, possessed relatively carbon free surfaces. The catalysts with relatively high carbon deposition (V, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mo and Zr) produced CO in addition to CO2. Traces of formaldehyde were produced over the catalysts Mo and V.