FUNCTIONALIZED GRAPHENE FOR GLYPHOSATE REMOVAL

Glyphosate is one of the world’s most popular non-selective, systemic, post-emergent, highly effective herbicide. Moreover, it is used for vegetation control in non-agricultural areas, such as weed control along railway tracks and also in aquatic system. Any form of spill or discharge, can be transferred to the water, including ground water, due to its high solubility. Generally it is said to have very low toxicity, but several in vivo and in vitro studies on animals have revealed its teratogenic, mutagenic, carcinogenic effect, and its impact on environment and on aquatic life. Graphene is believed to be one of the most interesting materials of this century. Features like large surface area and presence of surface functional groups due to its unique two-dimensional nature and associated band structure make single sheets of carbon and their composites an attractive adsorbent candidate for water purification. However, the use of graphenic materials for large-scale and its applications like water purification is limited. This is mainly because of the difficulty in large-scale synthesis and post treatment-handling, like laborious processes as high-speed centrifugation, membrane filtration, or magnetic separation are not practical for many end-users. The properties of Graphene can be easily enhanced through chemical modifications. The aim of the present study is the synthesis of a new technology using Graphene functionalized with magnetic nanoparticles for Glyphosate removal from water.