Relevance:
Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune came up with a custom-designed unique molecular sponge-like material — macro/microporous ionic organic framework — which can swiftly clean polluted water by soaking up contaminants.
More about iVOFm Technique:
- Novel material – viologen-unit grafted organic-framework (iVOFm)
- The material employs amalgamation of electrostatics driven ion-exchange combined with nanometer-sized macropores and specific binding sites for the targeted pollutants.
- The size and number of tunable macropores along with the strong electrostatic interaction of iVOFm can quickly remove various toxic pollutants from water.
- Effectiveness –
- It showed ultrafast capture of all the pollutants — both organic and inorganic — with over 93% removal in just 30 seconds.
- The new material showed ultrafast removal of sulfadimethoxine antibiotic from water almost completely.
- Sulfadimethoxine antibiotic – a long-lasting antimicrobial medication used in veterinary medicine.
Ion-exchange method:
Ion exchange involves removing certain contaminants from water by essentially exchanging the contaminant with an ionic substance that’s considerably safer.
Industrial applications:
- Purified water for power engineering (preparing high-purity water that can be used for nuclear, power engineering, and electronic industries.)
- Soft water production for soaps and laundry detergents
- Metals finishing
- Food and beverage production
- Sugar production
- Pharmaceutical technology
- Industrial water treatment
- Hydro-metallurgy
- Semiconductor applications
- Potable water treatment
Reference: The Hindu
