Trapping of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by amphiphilic cyclodextrin functionalized polypropylene nonwovens

Recently, there has been an augmented focus on the increasing amount of pesticides, drug residues and endocrine disruptors present in waste and drinking water1. These pollutants represent a challenge in water purification since they may be hazardous to human health even in low doses2.

Cyclodextrins (CDs) are known to be able to form inclusion complexes with a large range of the unwanted pollutantse.g. 3 but in order to utilise this ability to purify water, the CDs must be immobilised on a surface, for instance, a membrane filter.

We have developed a simple and fast method for the functionalization of otherwise inert textiles with amphiphilic CDs using relatively non-harmful organic solvents and an easy setup. The method relies on the self-assembly properties of amphiphilic CDs and can be applied in situ by as various methods as spray and kiss-roll yielding multi-layers on the surface of the textile fibers.

In this study we present the ability of amphiphilic CD coated polypropylene nonwovens to trap 8 different polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons/endocrine disruptors from aqueous solutions thus demonstrating the potential of using the amphiphilic cyclodextrins for water purification.