WO2019165598A1

WO2019165598A1 - Polymer composite granule and method of processing the same

Info

Publication number: WO2019165598A1
Application number: PCT/CN2018/077551
Authority: WO
Inventors: Minling Liu; Changquan QIU; Christine MA; Bo REN
Original assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
Priority date: 2018-02-28
Filing date: 2018-02-28
Publication date: 2019-09-06

Abstract

A polymer composite granule and method of processing the same. The polymer composite granule includes an adsorbent material and a polymer material.

Description

POLYMER COMPOSITE GRANULE AND METHOD OF PROCESSING THE SAME

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a polymer composite granule and methods of processing the same.

Background

Heavy metals, such as, for instance, arsenic (As) , mercury (Hg) , lead (Pb) , and cadmium (Cd) , may be found in potentially harmful concentration levels in numerous drinking water systems due to, for example, natural and industrial pollution. In order to prevent health problems, such toxic heavy metals must be removed from the water to very low concentration levels, such as 10 parts per billion (ppb) for As and Pb, 1 ppb for Hg, and 5 ppb for Cd, for instance, as recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) .

One current approach for removing heavy metals from water (e.g., drinking water) is reverse osmosis, which uses a semipermeable membrane to remove particles from the water. However, a reverse osmosis approach can have a high energy consumption, a high cost, and/or can produce highly concentrated waste water and, therefore, may not be suitable for residential (e.g., domestic) uses and settings.

Another current approach for removing heavy metals from water is to filter the water through a cartridge that includes granule adsorbent materials. However, the adsorbent materials used to remove heavy metals in current water filter cartridges may have a low reaction efficiency with the heavy metals and, therefore, may not be able to efficiently remove the heavy metals from the water. Accordingly, current water filter cartridges using adsorbent materials may need to be a large size to ensure there is sufficient contact and reaction between the water and the adsorbent materials to effectively filter the water (e.g., to remove the heavy metals from the water to the low concentration levels recommended by the WHO) and, therefore, may not be suitable for residential uses and settings.

Some approaches for producing solid granules, such as compaction granulation, centrifugal granulation, melting granulation, spraying granulation, and extrusion granulation, use high temperature heating and/or high pressure to enhance the crush strength of the obtained granules. Further, some granules used to remove heavy metals from water may need to undergo various chemical reactions, synthetizations, and/or processes, such as metal coating and/or doping, which can be complicated and/or complex, to be able to effectively filter the water. Accordingly, current granules, can be expensive and/or difficult to prepare and/or produce.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 illustrates an example polymer composite granule in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

Figure 2 illustrates a graph showing the efficiency levels at which a polymer composite granule in accordance with the present disclosure can remove different heavy metals from water.

Figure 3 illustrates a method of processing a polymer composite granule in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

A polymer composite granule and method for processing the same are described herein. For example, one or more embodiments include an adsorbent material, wherein the adsorbent material can be a metal oxide material, and a polymer material, wherein the polymer material can be polyacrylonitrile (PAN) .

A polymer composite granule in accordance with the present disclosure can be less costly and/or use less energy than current approaches for forming granules, such as compaction granulation. As such, polymer composite granule in accordance with the present disclosure may be particularly beneficial for water filter cartridges for residential (e.g., domestic) uses and/or settings.

Further, the polymer composite granule in accordance with the present disclosure can have a higher reaction efficiency with heavy metals (e.g., As, Hg, Pb, and/or Cd) and, therefore, may be able to remove heavy metals from water more efficiently, than previous granules. Accordingly, the polymer composite granule in accordance with the present disclosure can be used in cartridge form factors that are smaller than previous water filter cartridges, while still ensuring that there is sufficient contact and reaction between the water and the adsorbent materials to effectively filter the water (e.g., to remove the heavy metals from the water to the low concentration levels recommended by the WHO) . As such, the polymer composite granule in accordance with the present disclosure may be more suitable for residential uses and/or settings than previous granules used in water filter cartridges.

Further, polymer composite granules in accordance with the present disclosure can include inorganic materials that do not need to undergo any complicated and/or complex chemical reactions, synthetizations, and/or processes, such as metal coating and/or doping, to be able to effectively filter water. As such, polymer composite granules in accordance with the present disclosure can be easier (e.g., less complex) and/or less expensive to prepare and/or produce than previous granular adsorbent material. Accordingly, the polymer composite granular of the present disclosure can offer more efficient water filtration in both residential and commercial application.

In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof. The drawings show by way of illustration how one or more embodiments of the disclosure may be practiced.

These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those of ordinary skill in the art to practice one or more embodiments of this disclosure. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that mechanical and/or process changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

As will be appreciated, elements shown in the various embodiments herein can be added, exchanged, combined, and/or eliminated so as to provide a number of additional embodiments of the present disclosure. The proportion and the relative scale of the elements provided in the figures are intended to illustrate examples of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and should not be taken in a limiting sense.

The figures herein follow a numbering convention in which the first digit or digits correspond to the drawing figure number and the remaining digits identify an element or component in the drawing. Similar elements or components between different figures may be identified by the use of similar digits.

As used herein, “a” or “a number of” something can refer to one or more such things. For example, “a number of adsorbent materials” can refer to one or more adsorbent materials.

Figure 1 illustrates an example of polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. The polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 can be used in water filter cartridges.

Water filter cartridges can be used to filter water. Filtering water, as used herein, can refer to and/or include the removal of, and/or the process of removing, heavy metals from the water. For example, a water filter cartridge containing a number of polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 can remove a number of different types of heavy metals, such as, for instance, As, Hg, Pb, and/or Cd, from water that flows through the water filter cartridge, as will be further described herein.

The polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 can be used in and/or be a part of a residential (e.g., domestic) water filter system, for example. For instance, the polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 can be used to filter the tap and/or drinking water of a residence. However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to a particular type of use or application for the polymer composite granule 100-1, 100-2.

As shown in Figure 1, the polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 can include an adsorbent material and a polymer material. For instance, the adsorbent material can be an active carbon (AC) , a metal oxide material, such as, for instance, a titanium dioxide (TiO ₂) material, an iron oxide material, such as, or instance, FeO or iron (III) oxide (Fe ₂O ₃) , or a heavy metal removal material. The polymer material can be polyacrylonitrile (PAN) , polysulfone (PSF) , polyethersulfone (PES) , polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) , polyvinyl chloride (PVC) , or a combination thereof. In such embodiments, the weight ratio of the adsorbent materials to the polymer material can be, for example, in the range of (50%～90%) : (10%～50%) . A higher adsorbent material ratio may provide an increased heavy metal performance and a decreased granule strength, while a higher polymer material ratio may provide a decreased heavy metal performant and an increased granule strength.

In the example illustrated in Figure 1, the polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 can have a spherical shape. However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to a particular size or shape for the polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2.

A plurality of polymer composite granules can be included in the water filter cartridge. For example, the plurality of polymer composite granules can be in cross-contact in the water filter cartridge. For example, a first polymer composite granule 100-1 can be in contact with a second polymer composite granule 100-2.

The adsorbent materials can be inorganic materials (e.g., materials that have not previously undergone a chemical reaction, synthetization, or process) . For instance, no chemical reaction, synthetization, or process, such as, for instance, metal coating and/or doping, may have been performed on the adsorbent material. Using inorganic materials, such as, for instance, TiO ₂ and Fe ₂O ₃, for the adsorbent material can reduce the cost and/or difficultly of preparing and/or producing the polymer composite granule and water filter cartridge.

In one example implementation, during the water filtering process, water can be input into (e.g., enter) the water filter cartridge at the bottom, and flow up through the water filter cartridge, contacting the number of polymer composite granules. As the water flows through the water filter cartridge and contacts the number of polymer composite granules, heavy metals (e.g., heavy metal ions) adhere to the surfaces of the polymer composite granules (e.g., both on an outer surface of the shape and on interior surfaces) , which are accordingly removed from the water (e.g., adsorbed) by the polymer composite granule. The filtered water (e.g., with the heavy metals removed) can then be output from (e.g., exit) the water filter cartridge at the top after flowing through the cartridge.

The heavy metals removed from the water can include, for example, arsenic (As) , mercury (Hg) , lead (Pb) , and/or cadmium (Cd) , among other types of potentially toxic heavy metals. That is, the polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 can be used to remove heavy metals such as As, Hg, Pb, and/or Cd from the water.

Water filtered by polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 (e.g., water that has flowed through the water filter cartridge containing polymer composite granules) can have concentration levels of 10 parts per billion (ppb) or less for a number of different heavy metal types. For example, the filtered water can have heavy metal concentration levels as low as, or lower than, those recommended by the WHO (e.g., 10 ppb for As and Pb, 1 ppb for Hg, and 5 ppb for Cd) . That is, water that flows through the number of polymer composite granules can be effectively filtered, which can be due to, for example, the high reaction efficiency of the mixture of the adsorbent material and the polymer material.

Figure 2 illustrates a graph showing the efficiency levels at which a polymer composite granule in accordance with the present disclosure can remove (e.g., filter out) different heavy metals from water. The polymer composite granule can be, for example, a polymer composite granule, such as one of granules 100-1, 100-2 previously described in connection with Figure 1. For instance, the polymer composite granule can include a mixture of an adsorbent material and a polymer material, as previously described herein (e.g., in connection with Figure 1) .

For example, Figure 2 illustrates a graph 210 showing the efficiency level 202 at which the polymer composite granule can remove arsenic (As) from water. As shown in Figure 2, the efficiency level 202 at which a water filter cartridge including 300 milliliters (mL) of the polymer composite granules can remove As from water can remain at or near 100%for an uptake of at least 1,600 L. As such, the polymer composite granule (e.g., the mixture of adsorbent material and polymer material) can effectively remove As from at least 1,600 L of water.

Figure 3 illustrates a method 320 of processing (e.g., preparing and/or producing) a polymer composite granule in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. The polymer composite granule can be, for example, one of the polymer composite granules 100-1, 100-2 previously described in connection with Figure 1.

At block 304, method 320 includes mixing an adsorbent material, a polymer material, and an organic solvent to form a polymer-composite solution. Forming the polymer-composite solution can include separately weighting a particular amount of the adsorbent material, a particular amount of the polymer material, and a particular amount of the organic solvent.

For instance, as previously described, the adsorbent material can be an active carbon (AC) , a metal oxide material, such as, for instance, a titanium dioxide (TiO ₂) material, an iron oxide material, such as, for instance, FeO or Fe ₂O ₃, or a heavy metal removal material. The polymer material can, for example, be polyacrylonitrile (PAN) , polysulfone (PSF) , polyethersulfone (PES) , polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) , and/or polyvinyl chloride (PVC) . In such embodiments, the weight ratio of the adsorbent materials to the polymer material can be, for example, in the range of (50%～90%) : (10%～50%) .

At block 306, the method 320 includes adding the adsorbent material and the polymer material into a bottle, such as a glass bottle. The organic solvent can be added to the bottle containing the adsorbent material and the polymer material. For instance, the organic solvent can be dimethylformamide (DMF) , N-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP) , dimethylacetamide (DMAC) , dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) , or a combination thereof. In such embodiments, the weight ratio of the solid content (e.g., the mixture of adsorbent material and polymer material) and the organic solvent can be, for example, in the range of (10%～50%) : (50%～90%) .

The adsorbent material, the polymer material, and the organic solvent can be mixed to form a polymer-composite solution. In such embodiments, a magnetic stirrer can be added to the bottle. Upon sealing the bottle with a lid, the bottle can be placed on a magnetic stirring apparatus. To mix the adsorbent material, the polymer material, and the organic solvent, the magnetic stirring apparatus can be, for example, set to between 20 and 60 degrees centigrade for a period of time until the solid content disperses in the organic solvent. For instance, the period of time can range from 2 to 24 hours. In such an approach, the process of forming the polymer-composite solution can be beneficial as it may not use high temperature or high pressure. In other embodiments, the adsorbent material, the polymer material, and the organic solvent can be mixed to form a polymer-composite solution using mechanical stirring and ultrasonic mixing, among other methods of mixing.

At block 308, the method 320 includes adding the polymer-composite solution to a water solution to form a polymer composite granule. The polymer-composite solution may be added to the water solution in an injection, drop-wise, and/or spraying method, among other adding methods. In one embodiment, the polymer-composite solution can be added drop-wise to the water solution. In such an embodiment, the selected polymer, such as PAN, may be insoluble in the water solution. The selected organic solvent, such as DMF may be soluble in the water solution. Thus, as the polymer-composite solution is added to the water solution, the organic solvent may co-solute with the water solution and the polymer material-based polymer-composite can form a granule as a result of phase separation.

The polymer composite granule can then be removed from the water and organic solvent solution. Once removed, the polymer composite granule can be used in a water filter cartridge to remove (e.g., filter out) different heavy metals from water. The polymer composite granule can be generally spherical as a result of the polymer-composite solution being added to the water solution in a drop-wise method.

As discussed herein, in some embodiments, the process of forming a polymer composite may ensure the crush strength of a granule without the use of high temperature and pressure. Crush strength can decrease the peel off that the polymer composite granule may experience during storage of the polymer composite granule. Peel off can be when one or more outer layers of the granule is stripped from the polymer composite granule.

Furthermore, as discussed above, in some embodiments, no chemical reaction, synthetization, or process, such as, for instance, metal coating and/or doping, are performed on the polymer composite granule. As such, the cost and/or difficulty of processing the polymer composite granule, as well as a water filter cartridge, can be reduced.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same techniques can be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments of the disclosure.

It is to be understood that the above description has been made in an illustrative fashion, and not a restrictive one. Combination of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description.

The scope of the various embodiments of the disclosure includes any other applications in which the above structures and methods are used. Therefore, the scope of various embodiments of the disclosure should be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

In the foregoing Detailed Description, various features are grouped together in example embodiments illustrated in the figures for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the embodiments of the disclosure require more features than are expressly recited in each claim.

Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.

Claims

A polymer composite granule, comprising:

an adsorbent material; and

a polymer material.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the adsorbent material is heavy metal removal material.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the adsorbent material is an active carbon material.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the adsorbent material is an inorganic material.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the adsorbent material is a metal oxide material.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the polymer material can be selected from the group: polyacrylonitrile (PAN) , polysulfone (PSF) , polyethersulfone (PES) , polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) , polyvinyl chloride (PVC) , or a combination thereof.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the polymer composite granule is a spherical shape.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the polymer composite granule is configured to remove a number of different types of heavy metals from water that flows through the polymer composite granule by adhering the heavy metals to surfaces of the polymer composite granule.
The polymer composite granule of claim 8, wherein the number of different types of heavy metals removed by adhering to surfaces of the polymer composite granular include arsenic, lead, and cadmium.
The polymer composite granule of claim 1, wherein the polymer material is insoluble in a water solution