The term microplastics is not yet 20 years old and even today the topic is not necessarily suitable for the masses or not everyone is aware of the health risk or rather not sufficiently researched. However, one can certainly state that it would undoubtedly be better if one could get rid of such particles from the water and the environment in general.
There are already various ideas on how to remove these particles: How NewAtlas writes, researchers are experimenting, for example, with magnetic “nanocolumns”, nanocellulose, semiconductor wires and filter columns with sand, gravel and biofilms.
Effective and fast
Artistic or schematic representation of the new filter system
However, researchers from South Korea are now reporting another approach that sounds particularly promising: the scientists at the Daegu Gyeonbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) rely on filters that work with frameworks based on covalent triazine (Covalent Triazene Framework; CTF). This is a highly porous material with a large surface area. In turn, this means that these CTFs have plenty of internal space to store trapped molecules and particles. The Korean researchers designed the molecules in the CTF to be hydrophilic and the material was subjected to mild oxidation. The result is impressive, because the filter was able to remove 99.9 percent of all such dirt – and that too quickly, because the (repeatable) filtering took just ten seconds.
The scientists have also been able to apply or adapt the CTF principle to another contaminant, namely volatile organic compounds (VOCs). With an adapted polymer that can absorb sunlight and convert it into heat, VOCs could be removed by 98 percent. ‘We anticipate that it will be a universal technology with high economic viability that can purify polluted water and provide potable water in areas without electricity,’ said Professor Park Chi-Young, lead author of the accompanying study.
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