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Advances in Polymers and Functionalized Materials in the Environment
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Advances in Polymers and Functionalized Materials in the Environment

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymeric Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 March 2025) | Viewed by 3664

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Monika Mierzwa-Hersztek

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry, University of Agriculture in Krakow, al. Mickiewicza 21, 31-120 Krakow, Poland
2. Department of Mineralogy, Petrography and Geochemistry, Faculty of Geology, Geophysics and Environmental Protection, AGH University of Science and Technology, al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland
Interests: polymer materials; composting; biochar; fertilization; silica materials; heavy metals; chemical and biological soil properties
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, various functionalized materials, including silica materials, zeolite–carbon composites, zeolite–vermiculite composites and polymeric materials, have been added to soil with increasing frequency. However, due to numerous modifications, their impact on the environment is not fully understood. Due to the developed porosity and adjustable surface chemistry of functionalized mesoporous silica materials, attempts to use them as adsorbents of various types of pollutants are often reported in the literature. In the case of polymeric materials, they are increasingly used to stabilize soil or are added to compost. These materials can affect the physical, chemical and biological properties of the soil to varying degrees.

The following are some of the major areas in which papers are solicited:

  • Modification/functionalization of polymeric materials;
  • Modification/functionalization of silica materials;
  • Circular economy in waste management;
  • Monitoring of soil pollution with trace elements and organic contaminants after the application of functionalized materials;
  • Reclamation and revitalization of contaminated soil;
  • Ecotoxicity assessments and ecological risk assessments after the use of functionalized materials.

Dr. Monika Mierzwa-Hersztek
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Materials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • zeolites
  • polymer materials
  • compost
  • soil
  • functionalized materials

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 1289 KiB  
Article
The Use of Diatomite-Based Composites for the Immobilization of Toxic Heavy Metals in Industrial Wastes Using Post-Flotation Sediment as an Example
by Krzysztof Gondek, Agnieszka Baran, Patrycja Boguta and Małgorzata Bołdak
Materials 2024, 17(24), 6174; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17246174 - 17 Dec 2024
Viewed by 976
Abstract
Composite materials based on diatomite (DT) with the addition of biochar (BC), dolomite (DL), and bentonite (BN) were developed. The effect of chemical modification on the chemical structure of the resulting composites was investigated, and their influence on heavy metal immobilization and the [...] Read more.
Composite materials based on diatomite (DT) with the addition of biochar (BC), dolomite (DL), and bentonite (BN) were developed. The effect of chemical modification on the chemical structure of the resulting composites was investigated, and their influence on heavy metal immobilization and the ecotoxicity of post-flotation sediments was evaluated. It was demonstrated that the chemical modifications resulted in notable alterations to the chemical properties of the composites compared to pure DT and mixtures of DT with BC, DL, and BN. An increase in negative charge was observed in all variants. The addition of BC introduced valuable chemically and thermally resistant organic components into the composite. Among the chemical modifications, composites with the addition of perlite exhibited the lowest values of negative surface charge, which was attributed to the dissolution and transformation of silicon compounds and traces of kaolinite during their initial etching with sodium hydroxide. The materials exhibited varying efficiencies in metal immobilization, which is determined by both the type of DT additive and the type of chemical modification applied. The greatest efficacy in reducing the mobility of heavy metals was observed in the PFS with the addition of DT and BC without modification and with the addition of DT and BC after the modification of H2SO4 and H2O2: Cd 8% and 6%; Cr 71% and 69%; Cu 12% and 14%; Ni 10% and Zn 15%; and 4% and 5%. In addition, for Zn and Pb, good efficacy in reducing the content of mobile forms of these elements was observed for DT and DL without appropriate modification: 4% and 20%. The highest reduction in ecotoxicity was observed in the PFS with the addition of DT and BC, followed by BN and DL, which demonstrated comparable efficacy to materials with DT and BN. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Polymers and Functionalized Materials in the Environment)
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16 pages, 2141 KiB  
Article
Modified Natural Diatomite with Various Additives and Its Environmental Potential
by Krzysztof Gondek, Piotr Micek, Agnieszka Baran, Tomasz Bajda, Jerzy Kowal, Marcin Lis, Anna Wyrobisz-Papiewska, Dorota Wojtysiak and Krzysztof Smoroń
Materials 2023, 16(12), 4494; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma16124494 - 20 Jun 2023
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 1998
Abstract
Diatomite has recently been the subject of intensive scientific research aimed at its extensive use in industry, breeding and agriculture. The only active diatomite mine is in Jawornik Ruski, in the Podkarpacie region of Poland. Chemical pollution in the environment, including that from [...] Read more.
Diatomite has recently been the subject of intensive scientific research aimed at its extensive use in industry, breeding and agriculture. The only active diatomite mine is in Jawornik Ruski, in the Podkarpacie region of Poland. Chemical pollution in the environment, including that from heavy metals, poses a threat to living organisms. Reducing the mobility of heavy metals in the environment through the use of diatomite (DT) has recently gained much interest. More effective immobilisation of heavy metals in the environment with DT, mainly through the modification of its physical and chemical properties by various methods, should be applied. The aim of this research was to develop a simple and inexpensive material showing more favourable chemical and physical properties compared with unenriched DT in terms of metal immobilisation. Diatomite (DT), after calcination, was used in the study, considering three grain fractions, i.e., 0–1 mm (DT1); 0–0.5 mm (DT2) and 5–100 µm (DT3). Biochar (BC), dolomite (DL) and bentonite (BN) were used as additives. The proportion of DTs in the mixtures amounted to 75%, and of the additive, 25%. The use of unenriched DTs after calcination poses the risk of releasing heavy metals into the environment. Enrichment of the DTs with BC and DL resulted in a reduction or absence of Cd, Zn, Pb and Ni in aqueous extracts. It was found that for the specific surface area values obtained, the additive used for the DTs was of crucial importance. The reduction in DT toxicity has been proven under the influence of various additives. The mixtures of the DTs with DL and BN had the least toxicity. The obtained results have economic importance, as the production of the best quality sorbents from locally available raw materials reduces transport costs and thus the environmental impact. In addition, the production of highly efficient sorbents reduces the consumption of critical raw materials. It is estimated that the savings from producing sorbents with the parameters described in the article can be significant in comparison with popular competitive materials of other origins. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Polymers and Functionalized Materials in the Environment)
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