Modified ceramic structures superimposed on a drawing of the principle of operation and a simple modifier
Image: Jens Meyer (University of Jena)
Switchable and customized
For the removal of anthropogenic (micro-)pollutants, sorption processes are also investigated and (further) developed in our group. The research relates on the one hand to the synthesis and characterization of carbon-based adsorber materials (e.g. graphene oxide) and the procedural (further) development of the sorption process (e.g. ultrasound-assisted).
In addition, surface-modified (switchable) ceramic adsorbers are being developed. These are materials which (mostly) consist of an inorganic carrier (e.g. Al2O3), to the surface of which organic molecules are attached via various anchor groups, which take over the function (removal of individual substances, substance groups according to e.g. polarity). The function can be switched on or off by various external mechanisms (light, pH, temperature). The main advantages of these systems are that they can be regenerated by electricity and tailored for different applications. The adsorbent materials developed are to be immobilized on various support materials and integrated into appropriate modules.
