Carbon-cryogel hierarchical composites as effective and scalable filters for removal of trace organic pollutants from water.

Effective technologies are required to remove organic micropollutants from large fluid volumes to overcome present and future challenges in water and effluent treatment. A novel hierarchical composite filter material for rapid and effective removal of polar organic contaminants from water was developed. The composite is fabricated from phenolic resin-derived carbon microbeads with controllable porous structure and specific surface area embedded in a monolithic, flow permeable, poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogel.

Phenolic carbon tailored for the removal of polar organic contaminants from water: a solution to the metaldehyde problem?

Current water treatment technologies are inefficient at treating water contaminated with metaldehyde, an 8-member cyclic tetramer of acetaldehyde widely used as a molluscicide in large-scale agriculture and in gardens, and which has been frequently observed to breach European regulatory limits in the UK due to its high solubility and frequent use. Here, we examine the controls on metaldehyde adsorption onto activated phenolic carbon, namely the influence of activation degree, pore size distribution, particle size, point of zero charge and surface functionalisation, by synthesising "tailored" carbons from phenolic resin. Metaldehyde adsorption has been found to be independent of specific surface area (SBET), which is highly unusual for an adsorption process, and is favoured in carbons with (a) high microporosity with narrow pore size distribution, (b) presence of mesopores which allow efficient diffusive transport, and (c) an absence of negatively charged functional groups.

Nanoporous activated carbon beads and monolithic columns as effective hemoadsorbents for inflammatory cytokines.

The aim of the present study was to develop and investigate nanoporous activated carbon materials for their ability to adsorb inflammatory cytokines directly from blood, for a range of therapeutic applications, including: systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) related to sepsis, cardio-pulmonary by-pass surgery, or ischemic reperfusion injury. Building on the previously established relationship between the porous structure of beaded polymer-derived activated carbon and its capacity to adsorb inflammatory molecules, we have developed and characterized monolithic porous carbon columns produced from the same polymer precursor matrix as carbon microbeads. The monolithic columns developed were assessed for their ability to adsorb inflammatory molecules from blood in a circulating system.

Activated carbons and carbon-containing poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogels: characterization, protein adsorption and possibility of myoglobin clearance.

Adsorption of myoglobin (Mb), bovine serum albumin (BSA) and γ-globulin (GG) onto activated carbons (ACs) with different pore size distributions, and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) monolithic cryogels containing AC particles was studied. The highest initial rate of Mb adsorption was observed for AC having the largest specific surface area (1939 m(2) g(-1)) and pore volume (1.82 cm(3) g(-1)).

Composites with macroporous poly(vinyl alcohol) cryogels with attached activated carbon microparticles with controlled accessibility of a surface.

A set of glutaraldehyde (GA) cross-linked poly(vinyl alcohol)/activated carbon (PVA/GA/AC) composites prepared in the form of monolithic rods using a cryogelation technique and studied using adsorption, mercury porosimetry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and quantum chemistry methods display porosity similar to that of PVA/GA cryogel at a high GA content (content ratio GA/AC = 1 and GA/PVA = 0.2). GA cross-linked PVA multilayer coverage is an effective barrier for adsorption on AC particles.

Inflammatory cytokine removal by an activated carbon device in a flowing system.

A prototype in-line filtration/adsorption device has been developed using novel synthetic pyrolysed carbon monoliths with controlled mesoporous domains of 2-50nm. Porosity was characterized by SEM and porosimetry. Removal of inflammatory cytokines TNF, IL-6, IL-1beta and IL-8 was assessed by filtering cytokine spiked human plasma through the walls of the carbon modules under pressure.