A research group at the University of Cordoba is developing a system to prepare decontaminating materials that remove nitrogen oxides from the atmosphere. The FQM 175 research group, attached to the UCO's University Institute of Nanochemistry (IUNAN), has developed these photocatalytic compounds, based on zinc oxide (ZnO) supported on silicon oxide (SiO), which are responsible for decontaminating the air. The novelty is that rice husk waste has been used for this purpose, which "modulates the growth of ZnO particles on a nanometric scale and their sensitivity to NO2", a pollutant gas with a high degree of toxicity, ZnO that is largely generated due to the use of fossil fuels, according to sources from the research.
Sustainable NOx abatement
The compounds, obtained by a grinding and calcination process, "have offered the highest efficiency and selectivity in the photochemical removal of these gases described to date, and in a cheap, simple and sustainable way", according to the study.
The results of the research have also demonstrated on a laboratory scale that these photocatalysts can make the high concentration of these polluting gases disappear in cities during peak traffic hours. Moreover, the activity of these compounds is fully recoverable with a simple water wash, so the study "will allow the real use of these decontaminating materials to be implemented in large cities".
