Pollutant removal from wastewater throughout a functionalized membrane based on poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene)oxide (PPO)

Emerging contaminants in wastewater have become an important environmental issue, posing substantial risks to aquatic ecosystems and human health. Over the years, several remediation strategies have been explored; among them, adsorption has gained particular attention due to its low operational cost, straightforward implementation, scalability, and the possibility of regenerating and reusing the adsorbent materials. It is essential to find new efficient adsorbent materials that can remove contaminants from wastewater. Numerous polymeric materials have been investigated for sorption applications, but polymers capable of forming nanoporous crystalline (NC) phases have recently attracted growing interest. Among them poly(2,6‑dimethyl‑1,4‑phenylene)oxide (PPO) has emerged as a particularly promising candidate, exhibiting remarkably fast pollutant uptake even from dilute aqueous solutions [1]. In this communication PPO films with NC phases used to remove contaminants such as dyes [2] and organic pollutants (PCE, nicotine), from water will be presented. A sulfonation of the polymer was performed: remarkable and unique results were achieved since kinetic uptakes and removal efficiency were higher due to the sulfonic groups present in the PPO amorphous phase; indeed by enhancing hydrophilicity, and by exposing anionic groups, it can both improve the diffusion of the pollutant molecules in the NC phase and, further to this, it promotes the removal of cationic contaminants by electrostatic interactions.