As freshwater scarcity affects millions worldwide, scientists and engineers have looked for new ways of filtering unwanted metals and minerals out of water while retaining those elements for re-use elsewhere.
Capacitive deionization (CDI), a technology in which a membrane made from electrode materials removes metal ions from water, has proved a promising technique for such next-generation water filters. Researchers from University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory envisioned the technique could be made even more efficient if they modified the molecular surface of the electrodes.
With support from University of Chicago’s Joint Task Force Initiative, three researchers investigated the best way to alter these surfaces. Junhong Chen, Crown Family Professor of Molecular Engineering at UChicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering and Lead Water Strategist at Argonne, collaborated with two Argonne colleagues: scientist Maria Chan and senior physicist Chris Benmore. Using experimentation, machine learning, and powerful X-rays, they developed a CDI device that adsorbed lead much more efficiently than before.
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