Nanomaterials for Environmental Remediation

Environmental pollution has become biggest threat to mankind due to its adverse effects on human health and the ecosystem. Rapid industrialization, expansion of urbanization and adoption of latest technologies lead to the release of hazardous byproducts and effluents that contaminate the environment. Nanotechnology has proved to be a potential technique for environmental remediation. It involves the most advanced processes that can be successfully utilized in overcoming the issues of environmental contamination due to their unique properties. Multifunctional characteristics of nanomaterials offer unparalleled opportunities in the elimination of pollutants in the nanoscale like volatile compounds, heavy metals, inorganic and organic ions, drugs, pesticides, aromatic heterocycles, biological toxins, pathogens, etc. Nanomaterials with smaller size, higher surface area, quantum confinement and low reduction potential bring versatility in their functionality. These nanomaterials can be utilized as chemical oxidants, catalysts, adsorbents, nanosensors, etc. Surface engineering of nanomaterials can be utilized to enhance their surface area and maximize their reactivity for adsorption of pollutants and promote catalytic reactions by oxidation or reduction of pollutants from contaminated medium. Besides surface area, the selectivity of specific nanoparticles also affects the remediation process. In this chapter, we have given a brief introduction to the nanoremediation pathways broadly categorized into four categories: adsorption, photocatalysis, nano-membrane, nanosensors for different classes of nanomaterials like carbon-based, metal and metal oxides, magnetic, two dimensional, etc. Nanomaterials can prove to be efficient in energy harvesting and storage applications due to the interplay between surface and interface. Hence, there has been continuous demand for nanomaterials with new architectures and physically controlled properties for the purpose of energy harvesting.