US 12570547 B1Patent grantUnited States

Copper Nanocomposite for Wastewater Sorption

Official patent title

Copper hydroxide nitrate/calcium silicate/graphitic carbon nitride nanocomposite material based absorbent for wastewater treatment

Arabic title: مادة مازة قائمة على مركب نانوي من نترات هيدروكسيد النحاس/سيليكات الكالسيوم/نتريد الكربون الغرافيتي لمعالجة مياه الصرف

Invention

Problem

Organic pollutants in wastewater require efficient removal, while carbon-nitride sorbents can have low surface area and metal-modified materials may agglomerate or leach.

Why it matters

A high-area composite with stated pollutant uptake could support wastewater research, but target identity, selectivity, regeneration, copper release, and real-effluent performance must be verified.

Approach

The method contacts a pollutant solution with a Cu2(OH)3NO3/CaSiO3@g-C3N4 nanocomposite-based absorbent and retains the pollutant on the material, which is prepared by microwave-assisted assembly.

Who may benefit

Potential beneficiaries include industrial-wastewater researchers, textile and chemical treatment laboratories, specialty sorbent producers, environmental-remediation teams, and membrane or fixed-bed process developers.

Potential value

The disclosure combines three components, high stated BET area, mesoporous nanorod-on-nanosheet morphology, a patent-stated capacity and contact interval, and microwave preparation.

Background

Industrial wastewater can contain persistent organic compounds and metals that require separation before discharge. Graphitic carbon nitride provides a modifiable surface, but its area and exfoliation can be limited; metal additions can improve structure yet introduce agglomeration, instability, and leaching risks. The publication describes a copper-hydroxide-nitrate, calcium-silicate, and carbon-nitride material and states pollutant capacity and pseudo-first-order behavior. It does not identify the tested organic pollutant in the supplied claims, define whether absorption or adsorption is intended consistently, or report selectivity, regeneration, breakthrough, copper release, real-effluent trials, or independent replication.

Technology overview

The absorbent contains 20–40 wt. % each of g-C3N4, Cu2(OH)3NO3, and CaSiO3. Patent-stated pollutant capacity is 100–115 mg/g, contact time is 40–50 minutes, and uptake follows a pseudo-first-order kinetic model. Metal-containing nanorods are 1–3 μm long, with 10–50 nm nanowires dispersed on carbon-nitride nanosheets. Average pore diameter is 3–7 nm, BET area is 140–160 m2·g−1, and pore volume is 0.3–0.4 cm3·g−1. Final microwaving is 160–200 °C at 4–6 bar for 30–90 minutes.

Potential applications

Laboratory organic-pollutant uptake studies.
Industrial-wastewater sorbent development.
Batch or fixed-bed kinetic evaluation after validation.
Copper-composite regeneration and leaching research.

Evidence-supported advantages

Three specified components are integrated in one sorbent.
A patent-stated capacity and contact interval are provided.
Nanorod, nanowire, surface-area, and pore ranges are defined.
A microwave-assisted preparation route is described.

Development stage

Laboratory synthesis, physical characterization, and patent-stated uptake capacity, contact time, and kinetic model are described; target identity, independent replication, regeneration, leaching, real-water validation, scale-up, and commercial operation were not established.

Commercial opportunity

The material may interest industrial-water sorbent developers, but the stated capacity lacks sufficient context for commercialization. Independent tests must identify targets and verify mass-balance terminology, pH and concentration effects, kinetics, isotherms, selectivity, regeneration, breakthrough, copper leaching, toxicity, real-effluent performance, manufacturing consistency, scale-up, and cost against established treatment media.

Patent classifications

WIPO IPC

C02F1/28Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
B01J20/02Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus

CPC

B01J20/0237Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J20/06Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J21/16Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J27/25Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/393Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/45Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/615Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/633Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J35/647Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J37/08Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J37/343Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J37/346Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
C02F1/281Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
C02F1/288Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
B01J2220/42Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
C02F2101/30Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
C02F2305/08Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge

Inventors

First inventorBabiker Yagoub Elhadi Abdulkhair
InventorMohamed Khairy Abdel Fattah Omran

Keywords

copper hydroxide nitrate
calcium silicate
graphitic carbon nitride
wastewater treatment
absorbent
uptake capacity
pseudo-first-order kinetics
microwave synthesis

Patent document and drawings

The patent publication is mapped to this record. Patent drawings remain within that publication; no separately cleared public media package has been supplied.