Polymeric Composites with Embedded Nanocrystalline Cellulose for the Removal of Iron(II) from Contaminated Water.

Anayet Kabir,Matthew Dunlop,Marya Ahmed,Bishnu Acharya,Rabin Bissessur

doi:10.3390/polym10121377

Anayet Kabir, Matthew Dunlop + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/polym10121377

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Journal: Polymers	Publication Date: Dec 12, 2018
Citations: 13	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Prince Edward Island

Abstract

The exponential increase in heavy metal usage for industrial applications has led to the limited supply of clean water for human needs. Iron is one of the examples of heavy metals, which is responsible for an unpleasant taste of water and its discoloration, and is also associated with elevated health risks if it persists in drinking water for a prolonged period of time. The adsorption of a soluble form of iron (Fe2+) from water resources is generally accomplished in the presence of natural or synthetic polymers or nanoparticles, followed by their filtration from treated water. The self-assembly of these colloidal carriers into macroarchitectures can help in achieving the facile removal of metal-chelated materials from treated water and hence can reduce the cost and improve the efficiency of the water purification process. In this study, we aim to develop a facile one-pot strategy for the synthesis of polymeric composites with embedded nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) for the chelation of iron(II) from contaminated water. The synthesis of the polymeric composites with embedded nanoparticles was achieved by the facile coating of ionic monomers on the surface of NCC, followed by their polymerization, crosslinking, and self-assembly in the form of three-dimensional architectures at room temperature. The composites prepared were analyzed for their physiochemical properties, antifouling properties, and for their iron(II)-chelation efficacies in vitro. The results indicate that the embedded-NCC polymeric composites have antifouling properties and exhibit superior iron(II)-chelation properties at both acidic and basic conditions.

Highlights

The exponential increase in heavy metal usage due to rapid urbanization and industrialization has caused detrimental effects on human health and the environment [1,2,3,4]
The synthesis of tetraethylenepentamine methacrylamide (TEPMA) was achieved by the modification of TEPA in the presence of methacrylic anhydride, followed by the precipitation of the TEPMA salt (TEPMA·2HCl) in methanol
The synthesis of the TEPMA salt is depicted in Scheme 1

Summary

Introduction

The exponential increase in heavy metal usage due to rapid urbanization and industrialization has caused detrimental effects on human health and the environment [1,2,3,4]. According to a recent estimate, the toxicity of heavy metal ions and their contamination in water resources leads to an estimated two million casualties per year. The presence of heavy metal ions such as cadmium, mercury, chromium, lead, and iron in drinking water is associated with organ damage, birth defects, and carcinogenesis [1]. The presence of high concentrations of iron in ground water due to natural resources or human activity and the continuous exposure of high iron content to humans is associated with elevated health risks, including organ. Tremendous efforts have been focused on the removal of iron(II) from water resources and some of the most studied techniques for this purpose are oxidation, electrolysis, ion exchange, adsorption, and electrocoagulation [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9]

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