Heavy metal recycling process and material useful in such process

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11091375-B2
Application number	US-201515126912-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 13, 2015
Priority date	Mar 17, 2014
Publication date	Aug 17, 2021
Grant date	Aug 17, 2021

Abstract

The present invention relates to the field of water treatment/metal recovery and to materials/devices useful in such processes. Specifically the invention provides for composite materials comprising amyloid fibrils; activated carbon; optionally a support material; whereby said amyloid fibrils and said activated carbon are in intimate contact. The invention further provides for the treatment of water using such composite materials.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A water filtration material comprising:
amyloid fibrils;
activated carbon in particulate form; and

wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form remain separate and distinct and are randomly mixed with one another and wherein the water filtration material exhibits properties of both the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form and wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form both treat water when water contacts the water filtration material.

2. The water filtration material of claim 1 , wherein the water filtration material further comprises a support material.

3. The water filtration material of claim 2 , wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form are present in a ratio of amyloid fibrils/activated carbon in the range of 1/1 to 1/100 (w/w) and the support material is a porous support material that includes the amyloid fibrils and activated carbon in particulate form within the porous support material.

4. A method comprising the steps of:
contacting a waste water with a water filtration material comprising: amyloid fibrils; activated carbon in particulate form; wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form remain separate and distinct and are randomly mixed with one another and wherein the water filtration material exhibits properties of both the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form and wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form both treat water when water contacts the water filtration material, thereby obtaining purified water and a loaded water filtration material; and
separating the purified water from the loaded water filtration material.

5. The method of claim 4 , the method wherein the waste water comprises elemental metals and the method further comprising the steps of: performing an oxidation/reduction reaction where the loaded water filtration material is in an environment having a temperature from 600° C. to 1200° C. for from about 0.1 to 12 hours to obtain elemental metals and ash; and
separating the elemental metals from the ash.

6. The method of claim 4 , wherein
the water filtration material is a filter; and
the steps of contacting the waste water with the water filtration material and separating the purified water from the loaded water filtration material are performed by filtering the waste water through the filter.

7. The method of claim 4 , wherein
the water filtration material is a blend of particulate material; and the waste water and the water filtration material are contacted for a period of 20 sec-24 hrs. at a temperature range from 5-95° C.; and
in the separating step materials are separated, by filtering, centrifuging or settling.

8. The method of claim 5 , wherein
the oxidation/reduction reaction step (takes place in a furnace, at temperatures in the range of 600-1200° C.; and
the separating step separation is performed by floatation or air floating with the aid of ultrasound.

9. The water filtration material of claim 1 , wherein the activated carbon in particulate form is activated carbon in particulate form obtained by chemical activation.

10. The water filtration material of claim 1 , wherein the activated carbon in particulate form is activated carbon in particulate form obtained by physical activation.

11. The water filtration material of claim 9 , wherein the water filtration material further comprises a support material that is a porous support material and the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form are within the porous support material.

12. The water filtration material of claim 1 , wherein the water filtration material further comprises a porous support material.

13. A water filtration material comprising amyloid fibrils; activated carbon in particulate form; and a support material within a water filter; and wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon are randomly mixed with one another, in contact with each other, and synergistically interact when treating water that contacts the water filtration material to form treated water.

14. The water filtration material of claim 13 , wherein the amyloid fibrils comprise fibrils being ≤10 nm in diameter and ≥1 μm in length.

15. The water filtration material of claim 14 , wherein the amyloid fibrils and activated carbon in particulate form and the support material form a composite water filtration material.

16. The water filtration material of claim 14 , wherein the ratio of amyloid fibrils to activated carbon in particulate form is in the range of from 1:1 to 1:100 (w/w).

17. The water filtration material of claim 13 , wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form are present in a ratio of amyloid fibrils to activated carbon in the range of from 1:1 to 1:100 (w/w).

18. A method comprising the steps of:
passing a waste water through a water filtration material comprising: amyloid fibrils; activated carbon in particulate form; a support material; and wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form remain separate and distinct and are randomly mixed with one another and wherein the water filtration material exhibits properties of both the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form and wherein the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form both treat water when water contacts the water filtration material, thereby obtaining purified water.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the waste water comprises one or more heavy metal pollutants and the water filtration material is loaded with heavy metal pollutants previously within the waste water after the waste water passes through the water filtration material.

20. The water filtration material of claim 10 , wherein the water filtration material further comprises a support material that is a porous support material and the amyloid fibrils and the activated carbon in particulate form are within the porous support material.

Assignees

• Eth Zuerich

Inventors

• Bolisetty Sreenath
• Mezzenga Raffaele

Classifications

• C02F1/288 Primary

  using composite sorbents, e.g. coated, impregnated, multi-layered · CPC title

• C02F1/285

  using synthetic organic sorbents · CPC title

• B01D39/14

  Other self-supporting filtering material {; Other filtering material (non-woven fabrics in general D04H3/00)} · CPC title

• B01D2239/086

  Binders between particles or fibres · CPC title

• C02F2101/20

  Heavy metals or heavy metal compounds · CPC title