New process aims to strip ammonia from wastewaterA dash of ruthenium atoms on a mesh of copper nanow
New process aims to strip ammonia from wastewaterA dash of ruthenium atoms on a mesh of copper nanowires could be one step toward a revolution in the global ammonia industry that also helps the environment.Collaborators at Rice University’s George R. Brown School of Engineering, Arizona State University and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory developed the high-performance catalyst that can, with near 100% efficiency, pull ammonia and solid ammonia—aka fertilizer—from low levels of nitrates that are widespread in industrial wastewater and polluted groundwater.A study led by Rice chemical and biomolecular engineer Haotian Wang shows the process converts nitrate levels of 2,000 parts per million into ammonia, followed by an efficient gas stripping process for ammonia product collection. The remaining nitrogen contents after these treatments can be brought down to “drinkable” levels as defined by the World Health Organization. “We fulfilled a complete water denitrification process,” said graduate student Feng-Yang Chen. “With further water treatment on other contaminants, we can potentially turn industrial wastewater back to drinking water.” Read more. -- source link
#materials science#science#ammonia#clean water#copper#ruthenium#catalysts#rice university