Nano World: Nano-Sponges For Toxic Metals
Microscopic particles honeycombed with holes only
nanometers wide soon could help purify industrial runoff, coal plant smoke,
crude oil and drinking water of toxic metals, experts told UPI's Nano
World.
Microscopic particles honeycombed with holes only nanometers wide soon could help purify industrial runoff, coal plant smoke, crude oil and drinking water of toxic metals, experts told UPI's Nano World.
The particles, made of glass or natural diatomaceous earth, are 5 millionths to 50 millionths of a meter wide and filled with holes a thousand times smaller. The surfaces of these particles can bear a variety of flavors or coatings that soak up specific toxic metals -- for instance, sulfurous organic coatings attract mercury, while coppery organic coatings bind to arsenic and radioactive metals known as actinides. The particles' spongy nature gives them an incredible 6,400 square feet to nearly 11,000 square feet of surface area per gram of material with which to draw in toxins.
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"We have a technology that can be used to address a large number of emerging water treatment problems, with arsenic and mercury as just a couple of examples," said Richard Skaggs a civil engineer at PNNL. "For example, in Washington, D.C., and certain other parts of the country, radium in the water is a problem, and many existing conventional technologies really cannot move it or other contaminants down to acceptable levels. These nanomaterials offer a new opportunity."
The SAMMS particles can not only soak up toxic metals, but once disposed of in landfills, the particles also should prove too large for microbes to consume. Keeping microbes clean of toxins helps ensure the metals do not enter the ecosystem and become concentrated, for instance, in fish, Skaggs explained.
Just keeping folks in touch with new science. Fortunately, nano-research doesn’t impinge on the “values and morality” crowd, very often.
Posted: Tue - November 29, 2005 at 09:51 AM