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Nirwan JS, Farhaj S, Chaudhary MM, Khizer Z, Hasan SS, Angelis-Dimakis A, Gill A, Rasheed H, Abbas N, Arshad MS, Hussain T, Shahzad Y, Yousaf AM, Chohan TA, Hussain T, Merchant HA, Akram MR, Khan TM, Ashraf M, Conway BR, Ghori MU. Exploration of a New Source of Sustainable Nanomaterial from the Koh-e-Suleiman Mountain Range of Pakistan for Industrial Applications. Sci Rep 2020; 10:577. [PMID: 31953500 PMCID: PMC6969096 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-57511-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2019] [Accepted: 12/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The present study aimed to explore a new source of montmorillonite and to develop an extraction and purification protocol for its isolation from raw clay samples acquired from the Koh-e-Suleiman mountain range in Pakistan. The process involved the collection of raw clay from the source, identification and quantification of montmorillonite. Granulometric extraction and purification protocols increased the montmorillonite content from 21.8-25.1% in the raw clay to 90.1-93.9% after small-scale extraction and 85.33-89.33% on a larger scale. A techno-economic analysis highlighted the practicality and economic benefits of large-scale extraction for industrial applications. This study highlights the existence of a substantial new source of this valuable clay which is currently used across multiple industries including construction, pottery making, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and engineering. It is intuitively expected that the large-scale extraction of the material will improve the economic condition of the region by providing employment opportunities to locals and may be a valuable resource for export.
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Affiliation(s)
- J S Nirwan
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH, UK
| | - S Farhaj
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH, UK
| | | | - Z Khizer
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH, UK
| | - S S Hasan
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH, UK
| | - A Angelis-Dimakis
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UK
| | - A Gill
- Ministry of Minerals and Mines, Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
| | - H Rasheed
- Pakistan Council of research for Water Resources (PCRWR), Ministry of Science and Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - N Abbas
- University College of Pharmacy, the University of Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - M S Arshad
- Faculty of Pharmacy, Bahuddin Zakariya University Multan, Multan, Pakistan
| | - T Hussain
- Department of Pharmacy, COMSAT University Islamabad, Lahore Campus, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Y Shahzad
- Department of Pharmacy, COMSAT University Islamabad, Lahore Campus, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - A M Yousaf
- Department of Pharmacy, COMSAT University Islamabad, Lahore Campus, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - T A Chohan
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - T Hussain
- The Wolfson Centre for Bulk Solid Handling Technology, University of Greenwich, London, UK
- System Engineering Department, Military Technological College, Muscat, Oman
| | - H A Merchant
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH, UK
| | - M R Akram
- College of Pharmacy, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, 40100, Pakistan
| | - T M Khan
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - M Ashraf
- Pakistan Council of research for Water Resources (PCRWR), Ministry of Science and Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - B R Conway
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH, UK
| | - M U Ghori
- Department of Pharmacy, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, HD1 3DH, UK.
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