Sustainable Removal of Contaminants by Biopolymers: A Novel Approach for Wastewater Treatment. Current State and Future Perspectives

Naturally occurring substances or polymeric biomolecules synthesized by living organisms during their entire life cycle are commonly defined as biopolymers. Different classifications of biopolymers have been proposed, focusing on their monomeric units, thus allowing them to be distinguished into three different classes with a huge diversity of secondary structures. Due to their ability to be easily manipulated and modified, their versatility, and their sustainability, biopolymers have been proposed in different fields of interest, starting from food, pharmaceutical, and biomedical industries, (i.e., as excipients, gelling agents, stabilizers, or thickeners). Furthermore, due to their sustainable and renewable features, their biodegradability, and their non-toxicity, biopolymers have also been proposed in wastewater treatment, in combination with different reinforcing materials (natural fibers, inorganic micro- or nano-sized fillers, antioxidants, and pigments) toward the development of novel composites with improved properties. On the other hand, the improper or illegal emission of untreated industrial, agricultural, and household wastewater containing a variety of organic and inorganic pollutants represents a great risk to aquatic systems, with a negative impact due to their high toxicity. Among the remediation techniques, adsorption is widely used and documented for its efficiency, intrinsic simplicity, and low cost. Biopolymers represent promising and challenging adsorbents for aquatic environments’ decontamination from organic and inorganic pollutants, allowing for protection of the environment and living organisms. This review summarizes the results obtained in recent years from the sustainable removal of contaminants by biopolymers, trying to identify open questions and future perspectives to overcome the present gaps and limitations.

Pseudo-graft polymer based on adamantyl-terminated poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) and homopolymer with cyclodextrin as pendant: its thermoresponsivity through polymeric self-assembly and host–guest inclusion complexation

Thermoresponsivity and self-assembly of a pseudo-graft polymer based on Ad-terminated poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) and homopolymer with CD pendants.

Preparation and characterization of poly(methyltetradecylsiloxane) stationary phases immobilized by gamma radiation onto zirconized silica

The preparation of stationary phases with enhanced chemical stability in alkaline eluents has been the principal objective of many chromatographers. New and improved silica substrates and advanced chemical modification methods are among the possibilities being investigated to reach this objective. The present work has evaluated these two possibilities for new stationary phases. First, the silica surface was modified by reaction with zirconium tetrabutoxide to produce zirconized silica particles having about 21% (w/w) of zirconium. Then poly(methyltetradecylsiloxane) (PMTDS) was immobilized onto this surface using different doses (50-120 kGy) of gamma radiation. These new phases were characterized using elemental analysis and infrared and solid-state (29)Si-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies. These new stationary phases presented column efficiencies of about 68,000 plates m(-1), symmetric peaks for apolar compounds and retention factors that depend on the irradiation dose and show improved stability in high pH mobile phases. The separation of several pharmaceuticals at pH 11 is presented.

A Substrate-Independent Approach for Cyclodextrin Functionalized Surfaces

6-Amino-6-deoxy-beta-cyclodextrin can be immobilized onto a range of solid surfaces via reaction with a predeposited pulsed plasma poly(glycidyl methacrylate) layer. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy, and quartz crystal microbalance measurements have been employed to monitor guest-host interactions between N,N-dimethylformamide or cholic acid and surface-tethered 6-amino-6-deoxy-beta-cyclodextrin barrels.

Synthesis of polymer-type chiral stationary phases and their enantioseparation evaluation by high-performance liquid chromatography

Two new chiral polymers of different molecular weights were synthesized by the copolymerization of (1R,2R)-(+)-1,2-diphenylethylenediamine, phenyl diisocyanate and terephthaloyl chloride. The polymers were immobilized on aminated silica gel to afford two chiral stationary phases. The polymers and the corresponding chiral stationary phases were characterized by Fourier transform-IR, elemental analysis, 1H and 13C NMR. The surface coverages of chiral structural units on the chiral stationary phases were estimated as 0.27 and 0.39 mmol/g, respectively. The enantioseparation ability of these chiral stationary phases was evaluated with a variety of chiral compounds by high-performance liquid chromatography. The effects of the organic additives, the composition of mobile phases, and the injection amount of sample on enantioseparation were investigated. A comparison of enantioseparation ability between these two chiral stationary phases was made. It was believed that the chain length of polymeric chiral selector significantly affected the enantioseparation ability of corresponding chiral stationary phase.