(GIST OF SCIENCE REPORTER) Aerogels

(October-2023)

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras and Tel Aviv University have developed an aerogel adsorbent that can remove trace pollutants from wastewater.

Aerogels are composed mostly of air and can be used to remove contaminants.
They, also known as ‘solid air’ or ‘frozen smoke’, are excellent adsorbents (a solid substance used to remove contaminants) and are incredibly lightweight solids composed mostly of air.
In addition, they offer advantages like adjustable surface chemistry, low density, and a highly porous structure.

The research team developed a silica aerogel modified with graphene.
They employed a method called ’supercritical fluid deposition’ to prepare these modified aerogels and studied their effectiveness.
The Graphene-doped modified silica aerogels (GO-SA) were found to exhibit efficiency in purifying water, attracting and removing contaminants due to graphene’s unique molecular structure.
Under real-life conditions mimicked in their experiments, the material removed over 85% of pollutants in controlled settings and more than 76% in continuous flow conditions.