Chapter 5 - Water Treatment Devices Based on Zero-Valent Metal and Metal Oxide Nanomaterials

Abstract

Numerous studies have shown that nanomaterials can effectively remove various pollutants from water and have been successfully applied for water and wastewater treatment. This chapter provides a revision on water treatment devices based on metal oxide nanomaterials. The use of nanomaterials (nanorods, nanoparticles, nanotubes, nanoplates, nanowire, nanosheets, branched structures, and hybrid nanoarchitectures) for the treatment of water has increased due to the size of nanomaterials, which influences the properties of these materials. Size and morphology induce the reactivity of nanomaterials and change the quantum confinement and the optical and the electronic behaviors. For instance, nanostructures of metal oxide are used as electrochemical supercapacitors, sensors, magnetic controlling systems, adsorbents, and catalysts to remove organic compounds from water by adsorption. Another important application is related to the use of these materials in membrane separation processes in water treatment with nanoparticles of iron oxide, silica, alumina, silver, zeolites, carbon nanotubes, and titanate oxide enhanced membranes, as well as for improved functionalities of membranes integrated with nanoparticles for water treatment.