IISER Bhopal Scientists Get Solution for Sustainable Water Desalination and Purification

It is estimated that around two-thirds of the world’s population will soon live in regions with water scarcity issues. Addressing this issue, IISER Bhopal Scientists produced Magnetic Porous Carbon Nanoparticles for Sustainable Water Desalination and Purification.

Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Bhopal (IISER) Researchers have successfully produced magnetic nanoparticles, which are minuscule particles approximately one hundred thousand times smaller than the width of a human hair.  

These nanoparticles have been engineered for multiple applications such as heat and light-induced removal of salt from seawater, the extraction of potable water from wastewater contaminated with dyes and deicing and anti-icing processes.

Explaining the significance of this research, Dr. Sankar Chakma, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, IISER Bhopal, said, “The photothermal desalination using our magnetic nanoparticles was effective with excellent water evaporation rate. This is because of improved mass transfer through a porous medium, like transpiration and capillary action, aiding faster upward movement of water molecules.”

The creation of magnetic nanoparticles with diverse applications, from efficient desalination processes to dye removal and de-icing represents a significant step towards sustainable and accessible water resources. 

The Research was led by Dr. Sankar Chakma, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, IISER Bhopal. The findings of this research group have been published in the reputed peer-reviewed journal American Chemical Society – EST Engineering. The paper was co-authored by Vishrant Kumar, Abhinav Chandel, Prachi Upadhyay, and Dr Sankar Chakma. The paper may be accessed at https://doi.org/10.1021/acsestengg.3c00297 

Desalination methods that produce usable water from seawater typically involve processes that need a lot of heat, like distillation or membrane-based techniques like reverse osmosis. However, these methods often require expensive equipment, large setups, and substantial energy consumption. A more sustainable alternative is photothermal (light+heat) --assisted desalination, which harnesses renewable solar energy.

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