IISc Researchers Develop Hydrogel to Remove Microplastics from Water

The researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have designed a sustainable hydrogel to remove microplastics from water. The material has a unique intertwined polymer network that can bind the contaminants and degrade them using UV light irradiation.

The IISc team led by Suryasarathi Bose, Professor at the Department of Materials Engineering, developed a novel hydrogel that consists of three different polymer layers – chitosan, polyvinyl alcohol and polyaniline – intertwined together, making an Interpenetrating Polymer Network (IPN) architecture. The team infused this matrix with nanoclusters of a material called copper substitute polyoxometalate (Cu-POM). These nanoclusters are catalysts that can use UV light to degrade the microplastics. The combination of the polymers and nanoclusters resulted in a strong hydrogel with the ability to adsorb and degrade large amounts of microplastics.

“Along with treatment or removal of microplastics, another major problem is detection. Because these are very small particles, you cannot see them with the naked eye,” explains Soumi Dutta. To solve this problem, the researchers added a fluorescent dye to the microplastics to track how much was being adsorbed and degraded by the hydrogel under different conditions. “We checked the removal of microplastics at different pH levels of water, different temperatures, and different concentrations of microplastics,” explains Dutta.

The hydrogel was found to be highly efficient – it could remove about 95% and 93% of the two different types of microplastics in water at near-neutral pH (∼6.5). Moving forward, the researchers plan to work with collaborators to develop a device that can be deployed on a large scale to help clean up microplastics from various water sources.

Source: IISc press release: https://iisc.ac.in/events/novel-hydrogel-removes-microplastics-from-water/

Picture: Suryasarathi Bose and Soumi Dutta, Department of Materials Engineering, IISc (Photo courtesy: Soumi Dutta)