Adsorption of metal ions and bactericidal actions using mixed zeolites and graphene oxide-based membranes

To purify water from various sources, the use of membrane filtration is an economical way to raise the emerging problem of a clean water shortage. Improvements in membrane science and technology have been important, but when it comes to the removal of small molecules, such as salt ions in sea water (desalination), waste water and industrial waste, the problem remains unresolved. Zeolites, microporous materials contain nm-sized channels and cavities, which can selectively pass throughout the membrane water molecules and exclude others, can be considerate as proper candidate for preparation of graphene-based composites, due to their tuneable properties. Further, antibacterial activity of GO (graphene oxide) was tested to evaluate the potential for reducing the use of chemical treatments in water disinfection and contrasting the fouling and/or biofouling in the membranes. In this work, a nano-channelled rGO (reduced graphene oxide) membrane (r-GO/CHNs) and innovative nanocomposites r-GO/ZEO3A and r-GO/ZEO13X membranes are proposed to remove metal ions from water, meeting the global need for the development of environmentally compatible, energetically efficient and rapid materials.