Versatile Process for the Preparation of Nanocomposite Sorbents: Phosphorus and Arsenic Removal

Nanomaterials are being increasingly utilized for environmental remediation. The use of these materials, however, is greatly hindered due to challenges in material handling and deployment. Here we present a novel nanocomposite synthesis method based on the direct growth of nanoparticles on and within solid support materials, referred to as Crescoating. In this work, iron and copper nanoparticles have been grown on polyurethane support materials using this process and applied as sorbents for dissolved phosphorus and arsenic in water, respectively. These nanocomposite sorbents exhibit rapid sorption with saturation occurring in less than 5 min. The loading capacity is 104.8 mg PO₄^3- g^-1 and 254.4 mg As(III) g^-1 for the iron and copper nanocomposite sorbents respectively, which is up to four times higher than commercially available alternatives. In addition, phosphorus can be recovered from the iron nanocomposite sorbent. This coating by growth process produces nanocomposites that do not emit particles and has the capability to be scaled and applied to other nanoparticles for diverse pollutant sorption applications.