IISER-Bhopal Scientists New Research On Sustainable Water Desalination and Purification
It is estimated that around two-thirds of the world’s population will soon suffer from severe water scarcity issues. It, therefore, stresses importance of desalination, a process that can provide local water sources for about 40% of coastal communities.
Taking into consideration of the situation, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Bhopal (IISER-B) researchers have successfully developed magnetic nanoparticles that can be used for various applications, including seawater desalination, water purification, and de-icing.
The magnetic nanoparticles, are minuscule particles approximately one hundred thousand times smaller than the width of a human hair. These nanoparticles have been devised for multiple purposes such as heat and light-induced removal of salt from seawater, the extraction of clean water from wastewater contaminated with dyes and deicing and anti-icing processes.
Obtaining clean and usable freshwater from sources like wastewater and seawater is a worldwide problem. Desalination techniques that produce usable water from seawater usually involve processes necessitating expensive equipment, large setups, and substantial energy consumption. In such context, a more sustainable option is photothermal (light+heat) – assisted desalination, mobilising renewable solar energy.
The creation of magnetic nanoparticles with diverse applications, from efficient desalination processes to dye removal and de-icing represents a significant step towards sustainable and accessible water resources. Such advancements in science offer hope for a future where clean and safe water is more readily available to communities across the world.
The researchers created the magnetic Porous Carbon Nanoparticles using a simple method inspired by Indian earthen lamps. The process included saturating cotton with nickel salt and mustard oil, and igniting it using a lighter, which, in turn, resulted the formation of specialised MNPs. The synthesized MNP was evaluated for its photothermal activities for three purposes – Photothermal Desalination of Simulated Seawater, Photothermal Separation of Dye Molecules from Effluent and De-icing applications.
The study exhibited that the nanoparticles could completely remove dye molecules from water when exposed to light and heat. Furthermore, these nanoparticles could absorb Near-Infrared radiation from their environment, resulting in effective de-icing properties as they heat up.
The research was conducted by Dr. Sankar Chakma, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, IISER Bhopal. The findings of the study have been published in the reputed peer-reviewed journal American Chemical Society – EST Engineering. The paper was co-authored by Vishrant Kumar, Abhinav Chandel, Prachi Upadhyay, and Dr Sankar Chakma.
