Researchers of Kerala University have developed a nanopowder with water purification capability that uses only sunlight to power itself.
Notably, the team comprising researcher Nisha Chandran; R. Jayakrishnan, Associate Professor of Physics department, Kerala University; and Rani Abraham, Assistant Professor of Chemistry department, Christian College, Chengannur, adopted a ‘green chemistry’ approach to synthesise the material without producing any by-product that can be hazardous to the environment.
The research work, published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Sol-Gel Science and Technology, discovered that the size of the nanopores plays a critical role in controlling the speed of nanomaterials in purifying water. This occurs especially when the semiconductor Indium Sulphide is made in the form of nanopowder containing nanopores.
