RAPID: Novel Functionalized Nanomaterials for Effective Remediation of Spilled Oil Contaminants in the Gulf of Mexico

非技术描述：该项目使用新材料来解决墨西哥湾石油产品去污染的迫切需求。石油是几种碳氢化合物、溶解气体分子、有机氮化合物、有机氧化合物、有机重金属、胶体颗粒和其他几种产品的混合物。一些易挥发的石油化学品很容易蒸发，而其他易溶于水的化合物会保留较长时间，对所有水生动物造成伤害。因此，本项目着眼于彻底修复因漏油而产生的有机污染物，研究了生物表面活性剂和光催化剂两种新型材料的集成去除有机污染物。生物表面活性剂的存在会增加油在水中的溶解度，并可能导致更高的石油降解率。通过使用基于石墨烯的光催化剂纳米材料，完全去除有机化合物将成为可能。这种去污染有助于清洁海水中的有机产品和有机金属污染物。该项目还支持绿色技术，因为在脱污染过程后，海水中没有残留的产品。更广泛地说，该项目激发了学生对纳米技术和修复科学相关学科的硕士、S和博士学位感兴趣的学生的去污染意识和纳米技术。技术细节：在墨西哥湾灾难性的漏油事件发生后，去污染的努力包括从石油产品中去除甚至微量的分子。该项目致力于更好地了解对所有有机污染物的彻底补救。它集成了使用生物表面活性剂和光催化剂-石墨烯颗粒(具有大表面积纳米壳层的光催化剂和掺杂或不含石墨烯的石墨烯)颗粒来去除有机污染物的两种技术。生物表面活性剂的存在可以增加石油在水中的溶解度，从而导致更高的石油降解率，而石墨烯基光催化剂纳米材料可以完全去除有机化合物。在快速反应研究基金(RAPID)的资助下，南佛罗里达大学纳米技术研究和教育中心(NREC)的研究人员正在研究从海水中去除石油产品的效果。这个快速项目还在研究从海水中清除有机产品和有机金属污染物的方法和材料。该项目正在比较从不同受影响地区收集的水的去污染情况。

NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION: This project uses novel materials to address an urgent need for de-contamination of petroleum products in the Gulf of Mexico. Petroleum is a mixture of several hydrocarbons, dissolved gas molecules, organic nitrogen compounds, organic oxygen compounds, organic heavy metallics, colloidal particles and several other products. A few volatile petroleum chemicals evaporate easily, while other chemical compounds that are easily dissolved in water remain for longer periods causing harm to all aquatic animals. So, keeping in view the complete remediation from organic contaminants arising due to the oil spill, this project investigates the integration of two novel materials such as bio-surfactants and photocatalysts for the removal of organic pollutants. The presence of the bio-surfactant will increase solubility of oils in water and could lead to higher oil degradation rates. The complete removal of organic compounds will be made possible by using a graphene-based photocatalyst nanomaterial. This de-contamination supports the cleaning of the organic products as well as organic-metals contaminants from sea water. This project also supports green technology because there are no residual products remaining in the sea water after the de-contamination process. More generally, this project stimulates students interest in de-contamination awareness and nanotechnology among the students interested in obtaining master?s and doctoral degrees on subjects related to both nanotechnology and remediation science. TECHNICAL DETAILS: After the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, de-contamination efforts include the removal of even trace molecules from petroleum products. This project works towards developing a better understanding of the complete remediation of all organic contaminants. It integrates two technologies for the removal of organic pollutants using the biosurfactant and photocatalysts-containing graphene (photocatalysts with large surface area nanoshells and graphene-doped photocatalyst with or without graphene) particles. The presence of biosurfactants could increase solubility of oils in water by leading to higher oil degradation rates, whereas the complete removal of organic compounds could be made possible by graphene-based photocatalyst nanomaterials. With funding from this Grant for Rapid Response Research (RAPID), investigators at University of South Florida, Nanotechnology Research and Educational Center (NREC) are examining the efficacy of removing oil products from sea water. This RAPID project is also examining methods and materials to clean organic products as well as organic-metal contaminants from sea water. The project is comparing de-contamination of water collected from different affected regions.