Removal of Plastics from Micron Size to Nanoscale Using Wood Filter

Min Li; Gonggang Liu; Chongqing Wang; Shanshan Chang; Jinbo Hu

doi:10.3390/ma17061361

Materials (Mar 2024)

Removal of Plastics from Micron Size to Nanoscale Using Wood Filter

Min Li,
Gonggang Liu,
Chongqing Wang,
Shanshan Chang,
Jinbo Hu

Affiliations

Min Li: Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Materials Surface & Interface Science and Technology, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China
Gonggang Liu: Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Materials Surface & Interface Science and Technology, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China
Chongqing Wang: School of Chemical Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China
Shanshan Chang: Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Materials Surface & Interface Science and Technology, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China
Jinbo Hu: Hunan Province Key Laboratory of Materials Surface & Interface Science and Technology, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17061361
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 17, no. 6
p. 1361

Abstract

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Plastic pollution, particularly microplastic (MP) and nanoplastic (NP) pollution, has become a significant concern. This study explores the use of porous wood for filtration to remove MPs and NPs and investigates their removal mechanisms. Undecorated fir wood with a thickness of 4 mm achieves a 91% removal rate for model polystyrene (PS) MPs (2.6 μm) at a water flux of 198 L/m2h. However, its separation performance for NPs (255.8 and 50.9 nm) is poor. It also shows that fir wood (coniferous wood) has a higher PS removal rate than poplar wood (hard wood). With poly dimethyl diallyl ammonium chloride (PDDA) modification, both MPs and NPs are effectively removed, with NPs’ removal rate increasing from <10% to 90% for PDDA/wood. Characterization results reveal that size-exclusive interception dominates for micron-sized particles, and electrostatic interaction is crucial for nanosized particles. Additionally, intercepted NPs have been used as a strong binder for hot-pressed wood to remarkably enhance the mechanical properties of wood, suggesting a novel recycle utilization of discarded wood filters. Overall, this renewable wood material offers a simple solution for tackling MP/NP pollution.

Published in Materials

ISSN: 1996-1944 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Technology: Electrical engineering. Electronics. Nuclear engineering; Technology: Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General); Science: Natural history (General): Microscopy; Science: Physics: Descriptive and experimental mechanics
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/materials/

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