SDET in Chemical Engineering

ChE 4779

Sustainable Development &

Emerging Technologies in
Chemical Engineering
Mahbuba Jannat, PhD
Assistant Professor
Dept. of Chemical Engineering, BUET

Prepared by Dr. Jannat

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Lecture Outlines

• Introduction - Nanoparticles

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 SDET in Chemical Engineering

Introduction - Nanoparticles

• Environmental remediation deals with the removal of

contaminants from environment for maintaining and
restoring the quality of soil, water, and air and, more in
general, for protecting human health.

• Remediation is based on many technologies and can be

divided in two main categories: ex situ, where
contaminated media are “excavated or pumped” to the
surface and purified, and in situ, where pollutants are
removed without removing media.

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Introduction - Nanoparticles

• Remediation with engineered nanomaterials and, in

particular, with nanoparticles (NPs) represents a smart
and cheap method to clean air and decontaminate soils
and waters from pollutants; this is, of course, a great
challenge.

• Nanotechnology deals with materials, one dimension of

which is less than 100 nm.

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 SDET in Chemical Engineering

Introduction - Nanoparticles

• The very low dimensions of nanomaterials confer upon

them physico-chemical properties which can differ from
those of the same materials in the bulk form: for example,
bulky gold looks yellow, whereas a solution of gold NPs
reflects red light.

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Shapes of gold nanoparticles

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Reason for different color of gold NP

Gold nanoparticles’ interaction with light is strongly dictated by their

environment, size and physical dimensions. Oscillating electric fields of a light ray
propagating near a colloidal nanoparticle interact with the free electrons causing
a concerted oscillation of electron charge that is in resonance with the frequency
of visible light. These resonant oscillations are known as surface plasmons. For
small (~30 nm) monodisperse gold nanoparticles, the surface plasmon
resonance phenomenon causes an absorption of light in the blue-green portion of
the spectrum (~450 nm) while red light (~700 nm) is reflected, yielding a rich red
color. As particle size increases, the wavelength of surface plasmon resonance
related absorption shifts to longer, redder wavelengths. Red light is then
absorbed, and blue light is reflected, yielding solutions with a pale blue or purple
color. As particle size continues to increase toward the bulk limit, surface plasmon
resonance wavelengths move into the IR portion of the spectrum and most visible
wavelengths are reflected, giving the nanoparticles clear or translucent color. The
surface plasmon resonance can be tuned by varying the size or shape of the
nanoparticles, leading to particles with tailored optical properties for different
applications. Prepared by Dr. Jannat
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Uses of gold nano particles

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 SDET in Chemical Engineering

Introduction - Nanoparticles

• Due to their small size NPs are characterized by a high

surface area to volume ratio showing larger activities in
surface related phenomena (e.g., adsorption, reaction rates,
etc.) than bulky systems with same mass.

• Consequently, there has been a very rapid spread of

nanotechnologies in many fields of daily life including fillers,
cosmetics, catalysts pharmaceuticals, lubricants, electronic
devices, advanced materials, biomedicine, and imaging
tools.

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Why do we use nanoparticles work in sunscreens?

• Titanium dioxide is effective for protection against UV lights. Zinc

oxide is also unique in that it is a true broad-spectrum blocker
protecting from UV light.
• Bulkier particles of zinc oxide and titanium dioxide have been used
in sunscreens for decades. Those sunscreens look white when
rubbed onto the skin because particles of this size reflect visible
light.
• When these sunscreen ingredients are manufactured into
nanoparticles – usually 25 to 50 nanometers wide – this is different.
• Despite clumping together when mixed into sunscreen,
nanoparticles of titanium dioxide and zinc oxide not only retain
their highly effective UV light-absorbing capacity, but also absorb
and scatter visible light, rendering them transparent on the skin.
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Why do we use gold NP in electronic device?

The precious metal can effectively carry small voltages and

remain corrosion-free. As a result, electronic components
and devices that use gold are highly reliable. For these
reasons, we use gold in connectors, connecting wires, and
connection strips in electronic devices, among other things

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Why do we use NP in lubricants?

• The addition of nanoparticles in base oils is promising

because it enhances specific tribological characteristics
including wear-resistance and friction

• The most important reason is that the majority of them are

environmentally friendly

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Introduction - Nanoparticles

• Environmental remediation is based on adsorptive or

reactive methods applied both in situ and ex situ.

• Both methods allow one to state that NPs for remediation

can solve big problems with little particles.

• Some environmental applications include the use of

nanoscale zero-valent iron for soil and water
decontamination based on redox reactions, NPs for
adsorption of heavy metals and organic compounds from
wastewaters, and titanium dioxide NPs for photo-catalytic
degradation of organic pollutants. Prepared by Dr. Jannat 13
 SDET in Chemical Engineering

Introduction - Nanoparticles

• Next lectures will focus on silica and titania NPs for their
adsorption, and photo-catalysis-assisted remediation of soils
and groundwater.

• NPs can easily adsorb pollutants from contaminated areas:

then, they can be removed from soils and wastewaters.

• An easier recovery of NPs can be gained if they are made

with magnetic materials: a wide overview is dedicated to
magnetic NP synthesis and characterization. 8

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Introduction - Nanoparticles
• Environmental remediation by NPs requires addition of
nanomaterials to soil and groundwater exposing
environment to a possible source of secondary pollution.

• In fact, it is known that NPs can be easily ingested, inhaled

or permeated through the skin of the human body and taken
up by animal cells.

• Nevertheless the toxicity of nanomaterials to humans is still

unknown. Some factors influencing the toxicity of NPs will15
be outlined.
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