Graphene is one of the materials most used by many industries when making different electronic devices. Thanks to it you can make batteries, drones, cameras or even vehicle parts, among many other things. Some of its characteristics such as its hardness, its resistance or its low weight make graphene a very useful material. In fact, a new use has been found for it in addition to all those it already has to act as a magnet to remove uranium from water and thus purify it.
The person in charge of making this new discovery has been the Massachusetts Institute of Technology . Specifically, a filter has been created that can be used on more than one occasion that uses graphene oxide foam and works the same as a magnet for uranium.
A new way to purify polluted water
Therefore, when applied in waters that contain this radioactive substance, the water can be cleaned and made drinkable .
Uranium is an element that can get into water without realizing it. For example, it can be filtered into the liquid thanks to natural deposits in rocks or by waste produced by nuclear power plants. Uranium can also get into the water if it is near a mining operation.
It is a very dangerous substance that is also invisible. Any human being who inadvertently consumes this substance will have negative consequences for their health . Also, it doesn’t take a lot of it to be harmful.
The tests carried out gave the following results: after applying this filter using graphene oxide to uranium-contaminated water, the water was completely clean in just a few hours. It was also great news to discover that the filter could be cleaned and reused without problem, having the same efficiency.
To clean the filter, you just have to reverse the electricity so that the uranium is released from the filter. Once this is done, it is ready to use again.
For the filter to work, electricity must first be sent to it, which causes the water to divide and release hydrogen, which causes the pH to rise . This produces a reaction that causes the uranium to be attracted to the filter.
An effective, reusable and cheap method
Furthermore, it was discovered during experiments that uranium was crystallizing into a form of uranium hydroxide that had never been seen before.
In fact, it can capture up to four times its own weight of uranium , being able to extract a capacity that makes this mechanism far superior to other existing mechanisms that have the same function.
The creators of the mechanism also confirm that it has a low cost to develop so that in the future it could be implemented in many companies to help clean uranium water. It is also expected that in the future the filter can clean other elements that pollute in addition to uranium such as lead or mercury.
