Category Archives: Inorganic Chemistry

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Revised: New Method of Water Purification can Clean Out Mercury and Other Harmful Metals

Carbon nanostructures have the potential to be used as a new form of water purification. A team of researches out of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay have shown the potential to clean out Mercury, Cadmium, and Chromium ions safely from drinking water.

 

The study, which came out at the end of December 2019, shows that three-dimensional nanostructured carbon florets (NCFs) are tightly packed enough to inhibit heavy metal ions such as Hg2+ and Cd2+ form passing through, while allowing the much smaller H2O molecules to pass through easily. This material is particularly good at adsorbing out multiple heavy metal ions simultaneously, making it uniquely qualified for practical use in water filtration systems.

Effectiveness of NCFs

Source: Moronshing et al. (adapted)

As you can see in the above image, the NCFs plug the narrow pathway for the contaminated water to reach the receiving flask. As the water molecules pass through, the pollutants are almost entirely blocked. The chart bellow specifies that as much as 93% of the heavy metals ion are removed from the solution, simply by passing through this NCF filter.

NCF Adsorption Efficiency

Source: Moronshing et al. (adapted)

Ease of Implementation

The most interesting aspect of this discovery is how easy it is to use. No energy is required to enable these filters, the water source simply passes through, and between 80% to 90% of the ions are instantly trapped.  The study further shows that NCFs are easy to reclaim after use and have long lifespans. These structures act very simply as a filter for harmful meta ions; a microscopic filter for atoms.

Synthesis of NCFs

Source: Moronshing et al. (adapted)

Furthermore, these NCFS work on a range of pH 2-13, with no significant drop across this large range. This means it can perform well on most all samples of water, and effectively decontaminate water safely. NCFs are also synthesized in a very simple fashion, requiring only minor modifications to an already common nanomaterial known as DFNS (dendritic fibrous nanosilica).

While there is certainly room for expansion into purification of other heavy metals that pollute water supplies, such as lead, this is a very promising step forwards!

-Griffin Bare

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Posted on February 9, 2020 by in Inorganic Chemistry

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Revised: Breathe in the air… made from moon dust!

Posted on February 7, 2020 by | Leave a comment

On January 17th 2020, the materials and electrical components laboratory of the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) in Noordwijk, Netherlands announced the launch of an oxygen plant: a facility designed to extract oxygen from moon dust.

Using molten salt electrolysis, oxygen gas (O2) can be extracted from oxygen-rich compounds commonly found on the lunar surface. The ability to produce oxygen on the moon will benefit future lunar endeavors as oxygen is used for breathing and rocket fuel production.

Simulated moon dust before (left) and after (right) oxygen extraction by molten salt electrolysis. The byproducts (right) are metal alloys. (From ESA)

Moon dust, formally known as moon regolith, is rich in metal oxides. Metal oxides contain metals with strong bonds to one or more oxygen atoms. These oxygen atoms require a significant amount of energy to liberate in order to produce oxygen gas.

In molten salt electrolysis (see figure below), simulated moon regolith is placed in a metal basket with calcium chloride (CaCl2) and heated to 950oC to melt the calcium chloride. The molten calcium chloride is an electrolyte that makes the mixture highly conductive. An electric current is applied to the heated sample, reducing metal oxides to metals and oxygen dianions at the cathode. The oxygen dianions are oxidized to oxygen gas at the anode.

Molten salt electrolysis setup (Modified from Lomax et al., 2020)

The idea of making the most of lunar resources has been driven by space agencies’ (such as NASA and the European Space Agency) desire to start sending humans to the moon again, but this time with the intentions of staying and setting up a lunar base. The ability to self-sufficiently produce oxygen would be a vital asset to these missions, reducing the cost and urgency of supply missions to the moon.

The metal alloy byproduct may also benefit lunar missions as ESTEC researchers now work on identifying the most useful components of the byproduct and their potential applications.

 

-Mark Rubinchik

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Posted in Chemistry News, Inorganic Chemistry

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A Bright and Sunny Future

Posted on January 25, 2020 by | Leave a comment

Climate change has been a hot topic throughout the latter half of the decade, and one of the questions is how do we create sustainable energy. This study published in October 2019 indicated that the solution may come from the development of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSCs). DSSCs are efficient and with low manufacturing costs, they make the ideal source for sustainable energy. This research group highlights a strategy of controlled synthesis of hierarchical materials, thus providing new applications to the development of sustainable energy products.

A DSSC Retrieved from: engadget

DSSCs utilize sunlight as its source of energy, which is then converted into usuable energy. Within its compartments, it contains a light sensitizer which is connected to a semiconductor that faciliates the excitation of electrons which are able to enter a series of redox reactions. The continuous cycle of electrons through the circuit generates energy which can be used in our daily lives, or for other practical uses within industries. Huang et al., proposed to optimize the counter electrode (CE) that is present from a Pt CE, with a 2D nanosheet composed of Co-Ni-Se. This turned out to be successful as the Co-Ni-Se complex catalyzes the reduction of I3- electrolyte more effectively compared the traditional Pt CE that is typically used.

Schematic Diagram of a DSSC. Retrieved from: Research Gate Figure 2.

How can this be applied to us in everyday life?

Currently, greenhouse gases release CO2 into the atmosphere causing the earth to warm, and  subsequently acidifying the ocean affecting marine life as well. As a society, we must be more conscious of our carbon footprint as all our decisions have an environmental impact. DSSCs can be installed on the roofs of our houses to supply electricity during the day, instead of relying on sources like fossil fuels for energy. It can also be used to generate energy and stored within a battery pack for portable charging of cellular devices.

It is not difficult to find alternatives to our current problems to climate change, and one aspect more money should be invested in is the research and development of sustainable and renewable energy sources.

– Jackson Kuan

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Posted in Chemistry News, Inorganic Chemistry, Popular Science, Uncategorized

Breathe in the air… made from moon dust!

Posted on January 25, 2020 by | Leave a comment

On January 17th 2020, the materials and electrical components laboratory of the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) in Noordwijk, Netherlands announced the launch of an oxygen plant: a facility designed to extract oxygen from moon dust. Using molten salt electrolysis, oxygen gas (O2) can be extracted from oxygen-rich compounds commonly found on the lunar surface. The ability to produce oxygen on the moon will benefit future lunar endeavors as oxygen is used for breathing and rocket fuel production.

Simulated moon dust before (left) and after (right) oxygen extraction by molten salt electrolysis. The byproducts (right) are metal alloys. (Credit: Beth Lomax, University of Glasgow)

Moon dust, formally known as moon regolith, is rich in metal oxides. Metal oxides contain metals with strong bonds to one or more oxygen atoms. These oxygen atoms require a significant amount of energy to liberate in order to produce oxygen gas. In molten salt electrolysis, simulated moon regolith is placed in a metal basket with calcium chloride (CaCl2) and heated to 950oC to melt the calcium chloride. An electric current is applied to the heated sample, producing oxygen gas and metal alloys.

The idea of making the most of lunar resources has been driven by space agencies’ (such as NASA and the European Space Agency) desire to start sending humans to the moon again, but this time with the intentions of staying and setting up a lunar base. The ability to self-sufficiently produce oxygen would be a vital asset to these missions, reducing the cost and urgency of supply missions to the moon. The metal alloy byproduct may also benefit lunar missions as ESTEC researchers now work on identifying the most useful components of the byproduct and their potential applications.

 

-Mark Rubinchik

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Posted in Chemistry News, Inorganic Chemistry

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4 Elements Newly Found – the 7th Row of Periodic Table is Completed!

Posted on January 21, 2020 by | Leave a comment

International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry https://writing-rag.com/2010/four-new-words/

Have you ever curious about the abundance of elements in this world? Research groups in Japan, Russia and USA published their discovery of elements 113,115,117 and 118. On November the 28th of 2016, International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has formally approved the name of these elements as Nihonium (Nh), Moscovium (Mc), Tennessine (Ts), and Oganesson (Og). These four elements completed the 7th row of periodic table and act as an important stepping stone toward “superstable elements” which are going to be influential in the future studies. 

Element 113, Nihonium (Nh) which called “The first element found in Asia” was found by Riken Center of Accelerator-Based Science in Japan. Three other elements of Moscovium (Mc), Tennessine (Ts), and Oganesson (Og) were discovered by Joint Institute of Nuclear Research credited to Russia and the United State. After five month of public review, IUPAC eventually added them to the 7th row of the periodic table.

These four elements were classified as “super-heavy” elements with more than 104 protons. They were synthesized by using particle accelerators to fuse one nuclei to the other. Further experiments proved the existence of these elements by reproducing the synthesis procedures. However, the life of these “man-made” elements seem to be too short for further discovery. “A particular difficulty in establishing these new elements is that they decay into unknown isotopes very fast.” Said Paul Karol, chair of the IUPAC’s joint working party. Nihonium has a half-life of 20 seconds, which was the longest among the newly found elements. Moscovium and Tennessine has even shorter half-life which is only 220 milliseconds and 78 milliseconds respectively. 

Vanderbilt University https://www.inverse.com/article/16794-tennessee-get-its-own-super-heavy-laboratory-synthesized-element-tennessine

What is purpose of discovering these elements since they disappear almost right after they are produced?

There are “islands of stabilities” which describe certain super-heavy elements that are very stable when they have certain number of protons or electrons, even though they are huge in size. Scientists believe that the next island will be in the 8th row of the periodic table. “the alleged but highly probable ‘island of stability’ at or near element 120 or perhaps 126.” Said by Paul Karol. These “Island of Stabilities” can stay from minutes to years which will be meaningful to study their chemistry.  

Although the life of these newly found elements are way too short to have a practical use, they are the sign of getting closer to the “Island of Stability” of “super-stable” heavy elements. Those “super-stable” radioactive elements are worthy to study and could have a lot of industrial applications. For example, they might be useful as a stockpile of nuclear energy to maintain the national safety. The discovery of these elements gave hope to scientists and encourage them to further discover the ultimate limit of periodic table. Hopefully they will be able to discover some stable super-heavy elements that are influential and have significant practical uses soon. The study of new elements would eventually be the breakthrough point of modern chemistry!

 

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Posted in Chemistry News, Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Popular Science, Uncategorized

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New Method of Water Purification can Clean Out Mercury and Other Harmful Metals

Carbon nanostructures have the potential to be used as a new form of water purification. A team of researches out of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay have shown the potential to clean out Mercury, Cadmium, and Chromium ions safely from drinking water.

The study, which came out at the end of December 2019, shows that three-dimensional nanostructured carbon florets (NCFs) are tightly packed enough to inhibit heavy metal ions such as Hg2+ and Cd2+ from passing through, while allowing the much smaller H2O molecules to pass though easily. This material is particularly good at adsorbing out multiple heavy metal ions simultaneously, making it uniquely qualified for practical use in water filtration systems.

Ease of Implementation

The most interesting aspect of this discovery how easy it is to use. No energy is required to enable these filters, the water source simply passes through and between 80% to 90% of the ions are instantly trapped.  The study further shows that NCFs are easy to reclaim after use and have long lifespans. These structures, while being nanostructures, act very simply as a filter for harmful meta ions.

Furthermore, these NCFS work on a range of pH 2-13, with no significant drop across this large range. This means it can perform well on most all samples of water, and effectively decontaminate water safely. NCFs are also synthesized in a very simple fashion, requiring only minor modifications to an already common nanomaterial known as DFNS (dendritic fibrous nanosilica). 

While there is certainly room for expansion into purification of other heavy metals that pollute water supplies, such as lead, this is a very promising step forwards!

-Griffin Bare

 

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Posted on January 20, 2020 by in Chemistry News, Inorganic Chemistry

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