An international team of researchers suggests that the tiny, magnetic, and temperature-sensitive robots they developed could be the solution in removing chemical pollution, particularly in water sources. These robots were built to remove heavy metal ions and pesticides for safer water.
The news release reported that the nanorobots were designed to be temperature-sensitive. It will disperse in cool water and trap pollutants like atrazine and arsenic in warmer water. Researchers said that the robots could be removed after the cleaning process using magnetics and be readily re-used after unloading the pollutants when cooled.
Magnet-Controlled Tiny Robots Provide Novel Way of Cleaning Chemical Pollutants From Water
The Worsening Chemical Pollution in Water
The world's water sources have become polluted over the years mainly because of pesticides and heavy metal ion contaminants from industrial activities. These chemical pollutants are harmful to humans and the environment.
According to the website of the Water Pollution organization, industrial and agricultural work involves many chemicals that can run off into the water sources and pollute them. These metals and solvents can go to the rivers and lakes, poisoning many forms of aquatic life that result in affecting their growth or making them infertile or could kill them.
Similarly, run-off of pesticides used in farming can also poison aquatic life and subsequently birds, humans, and other animals that eat fish from these waters.
Additionally, petroleum is another chemical pollutant that contaminates water via oil spill when a ship ruptures. Although oil spills are usually localized, their effect on wildlife can spread for miles, cause the death of many fish and seabirds, and affect human health.
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Nanorobots Remove Chemical Pollutants in Water
In the study, titled "Pick Up and Dispose of Pollutants From Water via Temperature-Responsive Micellar Copolymers on Magnetite Nanorobots," published in the journal Nature Communications, the international team of researchers demonstrated how the 200 nanometer-wide robots could guide the future design of sustainable technologies for chemical pollution removal in water sources.
According to CNet, the sustainable part of the new technology is worth highlighting because these robots are made of temperature-sensitive plastic designed to be reusable.
Researchers explained that the temperature-sensitive plastic acts as the hands of the robots, wherein it disperse when in cool water. The robots attach themselves to microscopic pollutants to capture it, so when the water temperature is raised, it comes together while the impurities they have gathered are in tow.
To remove the pollutants from the robots, simply cool them and unload. After which, the nanorobots can be used again to capture more chemical pollutants. The team tested the robots using water with low concentrations of arsenic, a chemical pollutant toxic to humans and observed that the tiny machines captured more than 65% of it after 100 minutes.
The technology is still under research and development, but the team hopes it could be widely deployed and effectively become a tool for cleaning polluted groundwater.
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