Immobilization of Polyoxometalate-Ionic Liquid on Coconut Shell Nanoporous Carbon Support: An Improved Material for Water Purification

Abstract

Access to clean water by all is one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. To achieve this, there is need to prepare sustainable materials for efficient water purification. This research aims to immobilize the Polyoxomatelate-Ionic Liquid (POM-IL), {[CH₃(CH₂)₆]₄N}₇[α-PW₁₁O₃₉] on nanoporous carbon (NC) prepared from coconut shell to form an advanced material (POM-IL@NC) for effective removal of multiple contaminants from polluted water. The POM-IL@NC material was characterized by Fourier Transform-Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD) Analysis and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) method. The material was then tested respectively for the removal of copper and lead using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) and methylene blue using Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) Spectroscopy from simulated polluted waters via adsorption. The material was further subjected to antimicrobial analysis. The results showed that the POM-IL@NC material performed better than the pristine NC in the removal of copper, lead and methylene blue from the contaminated water. The POM-IL@NC also exhibited significant improvement in antimicrobial activity than NC against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. This shows that the new material could effectively be applied for multiple contaminants treatment of polluted water.