GraphChem will focus on the development, characterization, and application of new magnetic-graphene-based nanocomposites and new chemobrionic systems to remove classical metals and emerging contaminants pharmaceutical compounds and technology-critical elements (TCE) from water and to provide new TCE recycling technologies. Graphene, known as ‘wonder material’ is well known for its extraordinary properties, and its application in water treatment has a huge potential. However, its large-scale production has still some limitations, making single or few layers of graphene, and their derivatives, expensive materials. This highlights, how important is, to prepare less expensive graphene-based nanocomposites that could be used for large-scale applications. On the other hand, today the scientific and technological importance of chemical-garden-type systems reaches far beyond the first experiments that noted their visual similarity to plant growth. For instance, these tubular, self-organizing, beautiful, and complex structures can have reactive internal surfaces with chemical and adsorption properties, they can be extended to mixed inorganic-organic chemobrionic systems or lanthanoids-chemical-gardens, opening a great opportunity for new and beautiful nanostructures, full of new properties and technological applications. Besides the development of new graphene-based nanomaterials photocatalysts and adsorbents and new chemical-garden-type systems, the other innovative aspect of this proposal is to address for the first time the need to develop cost-effective and environmental-friendly water treatment technologies for distinct types of contaminants and to find alternative sources in supplying TCE.
ChemGraph involves a multidisciplinary team, including researchers from CICECO, LAQV and CESAM of The University of Aveiro, enabling an holistic solution to develop cost-effective and environmentally attractive water treatment technology, and providing TCE recycling alternatives.