FIELD

Aspects described herein relate generally to adsorbent systems and methods for capturing and/or separating organic species (e.g., uncharged organic species) from mixtures with water.

BACKGROUND

Separation processes are of great importance in the chemical and environmental industries, accounting for 10-25% of the world's energy consumption, and about a third of total capital and operation costs in industrial plants. The development of separation technologies for water treatment with high energy efficiency and low environmental impact has become a primary engineering challenge for the 21stcentury due to the worldwide occurrence of water contamination and the associated negative impacts on the environment and human health. Electrochemically controlled processes, such as capacitive deionization, have emerged as promising candidates for wastewater management and water desalination. However, since these previously developed electrochemical methods rely primarily on the electrostatic interaction between the electrode and the target pollutant, they only work for charged species (e.g., anions, cations). The aforementioned electrochemical methods and systems are not applicable to uncharged organic pollutants, which constitute the majority of industrial and municipal water contaminants, including many dyes, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and carcinogenic aromatics.

Accordingly, improved systems and methods are needed for separating organic species (e.g., uncharged organic species) from water.

SUMMARY

The current disclosure is related to adsorbent systems and methods for capturing and/or separating organic species (e.g., uncharged organic species) from water.

Certain embodiments are related to a method of separating an uncharged organic species from water, the method comprising applying a first electrical potential to a first adsorbent, contacting the first adsorbent with a feed stream comprising water and the uncharged organic species, and adsorbing at least some of the uncharged organic species into the first adsorbent.

Some embodiments are related to a method of separating an organic species from water, the method comprising applying a reductive potential to a first adsorbent, contacting the first adsorbent with a feed stream comprising water and the organic species, and adsorbing at least some of the organic species into the first adsorbent.

In certain embodiments, a system for reversibly adsorbing organic species is described, the system comprising a first adsorbent and/or a second adsorbent, and a polymeric coating associated with the first and/or second adsorbent, wherein the polymer coating comprises at least one redox active polymer species, and the conductivity of the polymeric coasting is from 1 S/cm to 200 S/cm, and the surface area of the polymeric coating is from 10 m2/g to 200 m2/g.

Other advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of various non-limiting embodiments of the invention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying figures. In cases where the present specification and a document incorporated by reference include conflicting and/or inconsistent disclosure, the present specification shall control.

