IISER Bhopal develops new way to separate toxic molecules from water

The details of the study have been published in the journal, Angewandte Chemie. The research is led by Abhijit Patra, associate professor, department of chemistry at IISER Bhopal and his research scholars.

Researchers at Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Bhopal have developed a novel method to produce free-standing crystalline nanoporous organic films that can separate toxic organic micropollutants from water. The details of the study have been published in the journal, Angewandte Chemie,  

The research is led by Abhijit Patra, associate professor, department of chemistry at IISER Bhopal and his research scholars. A statement from the institute said that membrane separation is a widely used technique in industry for separating and purifying various substances. The membranes used for this process are usually made of porous materials, with pore size being an important factor in determining their filtration functionality. Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have emerged as promising porous materials for membrane-based separation. 

COFs are two-dimensional or three-dimensional crystalline porous organic polymers that have unique advantages over other porous materials because their structures and functions can be precisely designed. These materials are lightweight, highly thermally stable, and permanently porous, making them a good choice for membrane separation applications.  

The researchers at IISER Bhopal have demonstrated the transformation of an organic imine cage molecule into a free-standing COF film. The films were nanoporous, i.e., the pores in the films were a hundred thousand times smaller than the width of a single human hair. The films were tested for selective separation of toxic organic micropollutants through a nanofiltration technique and shown to be effective. 

Abhijit Patra said: "Our findings open up a new route for structural interconversion between two crystalline entities with diverse dimensionality, employing dynamic covalent chemistry (DCC) at the confined interface under ambient conditions". 

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