US 12655037 B1Patent grantUnited States

Bismuth-Oxide Sorbent for Water Cleanup

Official patent title

Nanocomposite for immobilizing contaminants disposed in an aqueous medium

Arabic title: مركب نانوي لتثبيت الملوثات المصروفة في وسط مائي

Invention

Problem

Aqueous media can contain persistent organic compounds, toxic metals, metalloids, and radionuclides that require capture without releasing hazardous sorbent constituents.

Why it matters

A broad-scope porous adsorbent could support remediation research, but practical treatment depends on verified capacity, selectivity, regeneration, bismuth stability, real-water behavior, and safe disposal.

Approach

The method contacts water with a Bi2O3/CaSiO3/g-C3N4 particulate crystalline nanocomposite in a fixed-volume dispersion or membrane-flow mode to adsorb and immobilize organic or inorganic contaminants.

Who may benefit

Potential beneficiaries include water-treatment researchers, industrial wastewater operators, environmental-remediation laboratories, specialty sorbent manufacturers, and hazardous-waste management teams.

Potential value

The disclosure combines three crystalline phases, bismuth-oxide and silicate nanowires, mesoporous carbon-nitride nanosheets, trimodal pores, and flexible batch or membrane contact.

Background

Industrial and urban water contamination includes recalcitrant organics and toxic inorganic species that may resist biodegradation or conventional separation. Adsorption can provide a comparatively simple capture step, while graphitic carbon nitride offers a modifiable porous framework. Adding bismuth oxide and calcium silicate may alter morphology and surface properties, but metal release, mixed-matrix competition, and secondary-waste handling remain material concerns. The publication provides phase, morphology, pore, synthesis, dose, and contact-time specifications, yet no contaminant-specific capacity, removal percentage, kinetics, selectivity, regeneration, bismuth leaching, real-water trials, or long-term stability.

Technology overview

The material contains monoclinic Bi2O3, CaSiO3, and graphitic C3N4. At least 50 wt. % of both inorganic phases can be nanowires 20–100 nm long, and at least 50 wt. % of C3N4 can be mesoporous nanosheets. Trimodal pore ranges are 2–6, 8–12, and 14–18 nm; BET area is 60–100 m2/g and pore volume is 0.1–0.5 cm3/g. Water contact is 1–120 minutes using 0.1–5 g/L in a dispersed batch or membrane-flow configuration.

Potential applications

Batch adsorption research for contaminated water.
Sorbent-loaded membrane-flow treatment studies.
Screening capture of organic pollutants, metals, and metalloids.
Licensed radionuclide immobilization research with controlled disposal.

Evidence-supported advantages

Three identified crystalline phases are integrated.
Nanowire and mesoporous-nanosheet fractions are specified.
Trimodal pore, surface-area, and pore-volume ranges are defined.
Both batch dispersion and membrane-flow contact are contemplated.

Development stage

Laboratory synthesis and phase, morphology, surface, and pore characterization are described with proposed water-contact modes; adsorption performance, regeneration, leaching, real-water validation, scale-up, and commercial treatment were not established.

Commercial opportunity

The concept may interest specialty sorbent and industrial-water developers, but commercial performance is unproven. Independent tests must quantify capacity, selectivity, kinetics, breakthrough, regeneration, competitive-matrix effects, bismuth and phase leaching, real-effluent behavior, manufacturing consistency, and cost. Radionuclide applications additionally require licensed handling, secondary-waste controls, and qualified disposal.

Patent classifications

WIPO IPC

C02F1/28Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
B01J21/16Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus

CPC

B01J21/16Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
C02F1/288Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
B01J6/00Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J23/18Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
B01J27/24Chemical 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
B01J35/613Chemical 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
B01J37/08Chemical or physical processes, e.g. catalysis or colloid chemistry; their relevant apparatus
C02F1/281Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
C02F2101/20Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
C02F2101/30Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge
C02F2305/08Treatment of water, wastewater, sewage or sludge

Inventors

First inventorMohamed Khairy Abdel Fattah Omran
InventorBabiker Yagoub Elhadi Abdulkhair

Keywords

bismuth oxide
calcium silicate
graphitic carbon nitride
adsorption
contaminant immobilization
trimodal porosity
membrane flow
wastewater treatment

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.