Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: Peoples'Friendship University of Russia
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The RUDN University Institute of Ecology is implementing a large-scale interdisciplinary project in environmental chemistry and materials science. Scientists are working on creating highly effective sorbents based on natural materials for the detoxification of hazardous environmental pollutants.
The project combines fundamental research at the intersection of chemistry, materials science, and ecology and is consistent with the strategic goals of science and technology development in the Russian Federation.
The scientific group consists of:
Doctor of Chemical Sciences, Professor of the Department of Human Ecology and Bioelementology at RUDN University, laureate of the university prize "For Achievements in Science and Innovation" and the St. Petersburg State University prize "For Contribution to Science" — Andrey Sergeevich Kritchenkov; Candidate of Chemical Sciences, Assistant of the Department of Human Ecology and Bioelementology, laureate of the Shorygin Prize and Presidential Scholarship Recipient — Anton Romanovich Egorov; Assistant of the Department of Human Ecology and Bioelementology, postgraduate student — Omar Muchlimovich Khubiev; postgraduate student of the Department of Human Ecology and Bioelementology — Van Linh Nguyen; postgraduate student of the Department of Human Ecology and Bioelementology — Roman Aleksandrovich Golubev.
We spoke with the team's leader, Andrey Sergeevich, and learned from him about the essence and novelty of the project, its methodology, and its goals.
Andrey Sergeevich, tell us more about your team’s project.
We are implementing a project I would call "From Molecules to Ecosystems: Highly Effective Sorbents for the Neutralization of Environmental Pollutants." The main goal is to explore the relationship between a sorbent's structure and its ability to capture, effectively retain, and, at the right time and place, release environmentally hazardous compounds. We also share the latest trend in this field, which is the use of natural polymers or inorganic compounds as sorbents.
How complex is the task your group faces?
This is a very ambitious task. To solve it effectively, a great deal of effort must be devoted to the chemistry of sorbent production itself: chemical design, polymer transformations, and the reactivity of various compounds. Furthermore, we must thoroughly study the kinetics and thermodynamics of sorption processes, find mathematical models that most accurately describe these processes, and sometimes even employ the apparatus of quantum mechanics. In other words, this is a very broad and multifaceted endeavor. Our primary goal is to understand how the sorbent works at the molecular level. Then we need to understand how to refine it, that is, improve its sorption behavior at the molecular level, so that we can ultimately conduct field testing in real ecosystems. Of course, one can't embrace everything, so we use natural polysaccharides—cellulose, chitosan, chitin—and layered double hydroxides, which are highly effective clay analogs, as the basis for creating sorption materials.
What methods and scientific directions underlie your work?
To synthesize and chemically modify polysaccharide derivatives, we delve into the intricacies of polymer and organic chemistry. We also advance scientific knowledge by developing entirely new, sometimes even revolutionary, approaches to chemical modification of polymers. It was in our group that a new scientific field emerged: "polymer-analogous transformations of chitosan under ultrasound." It formed the basis of my doctoral dissertation and has been widely developed by other polymer chemist research groups in Russia and abroad.
To synthesize layered double hydroxides (LDHs), we rely extensively on inorganic chemistry methods, as LDHs are typical inorganic compounds. We are developing various approaches to producing LDHs in the form of micro- and nanoparticles, altering their crystallinity using ultrasound, microwave, and hydrothermal irradiation.
We are currently devoting significant effort to creating composite materials with diverse structures, including both polymers and LDHs. In other words, we are combining polymer and inorganic chemistry. This allows us to produce porous and film-like materials with outstanding mechanical properties using completely environmentally friendly components: polysaccharides and LDHs (the latter contain some of the most non-toxic elements—divalent magnesium and trivalent iron).
What distinguishes your project from similar ones in this field?
Our unique approach lies in our approach to developing the materials themselves and "molecularly tuning" them to the desired state using ultrasonic vibrations, as well as a combination of ultrasound and high hydrostatic pressure. This is a very promising area of research that has emerged relatively recently. We are among the pioneers, mastering, developing, and optimizing this method.
A strong scientific team is working on the project. Tell us about your key collaborations.
We collaborate closely with the Institute of Technical Acoustics of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus—the only specialized academic institute in the field of ultrasound in the post-Soviet space. This long-standing collaboration has resulted in several dozen joint publications, most of which were published in Q1 journals.
We also collaborate with Professor Wanjun Liu's research group (Donghua University, Shanghai, China). Our group synthesizes new polymers that hold promise as environmental sorbents. Professor Liu's group is interested in these same polymers, but from a different perspective—from a biomedical perspective. They are studying our polymers as a basis for creating materials with immunoisolation properties, which is important for transplantation. Our collaboration has already resulted in a number of high-profile publications.
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