Scientists have developed a new method to measure and remove sulfate from water, potentially leading to cleaner waterways and more effective nuclear waste treatments.
A collaborative team from The University of Queensland and Xiamen University in China has designed a cage-like molecule to trap sulfate, a naturally occurring ion, in water.
Professor Jack Clegg from UQ's School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences said controlling the sulfate concentration in water is a significant challenge in health, industry and environmental management.
The researchers developed a molecule that measures and traps sulfate in water with a high degree of selectivity.
This 'molecular trap' can be prepared inexpensively from off-the-shelf chemicals.
"Being able to stabilise a highly negatively charged chemical such as sulfate inside a charge-neutral cavity is a remarkable feature of our molecule," Dr Wu said.
"This mimics the function of naturally occurring sulfate-binding proteins.
From:Chemistry world
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