R1 PM Nanotechnology Environmental Remediation, Fate, and Transport
Thursday, 17 November 2005: 1:50 PM - 5:30 PM in Ballroom 1
(GAN-1117-849129) Remediation of Inorganic and Organic Contaminants Using Nanoparticle Media.
Ganesh, R1, Leong, L1, Jain, M2, Bisso, S2, Skandan, G2, 1 Kennedy/Jenks Consultants, Irvine, CA, USA2 NEI Corporation, Piscattaway, NJ, USA
ABSTRACT- Nanotechnology involves the use of extremely small size (1 -100 nm) particles, synthesized by atomic or molecular level manipulation, for various applications. The smaller size provides a significantly high surface area per unit mass of the nanoparticles. In addition, as a result of the small size, there is a high density of electrons at the edge of these particles, which results in a significantly higher reactivity of the nanoparticles compared to particles of larger size prepared by conventional methods. These and other unique surface properties of nanoparticles make them an attractive media for various applications, including environmental remediation. The project team (Kennedy/Jenks Consultants and NEI Corporation) is currently involved in several projects to evaluate remediation of inorganic (arsenic, molybdenum, mercury, copper, lead and uranium) and organic (NOM) constituents of environmental concern using engineered metal oxide nanoparticles. Batch kinetic and isotherm studies were performed using synthetic as well as impacted groundwaters. The kinetic study indicated that sorption of natural organic matter to ferric oxide-based nanopowder was extremely rapid. More than 90% of the NOM (initial TOC 20 mg/l) was adsorbed within 10 minutes by 400 mg of the adsorption media. Preliminary isotherm experiments for NOM and arsenic using this media yielded specific adsorption capacities of >0.18 mg/sq m, and 16 
g/sq m, respectively. These values were significantly higher than (0.1 mg/sq m and 6 g/sq m) those reported for commercially used ferric oxide media. Similar results were observed for uranium, copper, mercury adsorption using Manganese oxide based nanopowder media. The adsorption characteristics of all the contaminants, except mercury, generally followed Langmuir adsorption model. Column studies are now being performed to evaluate breakthrough characteristics.
Key words: Nanopowder, Adsorption, Arsenic, NOM