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A novel ion separation methodology using a cation-exchange membrane modified with iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4 NPs) coated with polyhexamethylene guanidine (PHMG) is proposed. The separation is performed in an electrodialysis cell, where firstly phosphate is electro-adsorbed to the PHMG@Fe3O4 NP coating, followed by a desorption step by applying an electric current. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work commercially available Fe3O4 NPs were coated with polyallylamine hydrochloride (PAH) and PAH functionalized with guanidinium groups (PAH–Gu) for investigating the phosphate adsorption properties under alkaline conditions. The coating can be prepared easily and rapidly and results in Fe3O4 NPs with improved properties related to phosphate binding and colloidal stability. At a low initial phosphate concentration (2 mg L−1), the novel Fe3O4@PAH–Gu material was able to remove phosphate rather independently of the pH condition (4.0, 3.6 and 3.7 mg g−1 at pH = 5, 8 and 10, respectively), whereas for the uncoated Fe3O4 NPs the amount of adsorbed phosphate drops by ＞75% upon changing from acidic to alkaline conditions (0.84 mg g−1 at pH = 10). Under alkaline conditions, the fastest adsorption was observed for Fe3O4@PAH–Gu followed by Fe3O4@PAH and Fe3O4. This can be related to the additional interaction forces due to the presence of primary amine groups (in PAH and PAH–Gu) and Gu groups (in PAH–Gu only) in coatings. Over 80% of the phosphate adsorbed on the novel Fe3O4@PAH–Gu material was successfully desorbed and the coated NPs were re-used over three adsorption/desorption cycles. This work will stimulate the design and preparation of functionalized polyelectrolytes for an extended area of applications, especially for the selective removal of target compounds from wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recovery of carboxylic acids from fermentation broth is one of the main bottlenecks for the industrial production of bio-based esters. This paper proposes an alternative for the recovery of carboxylates produced by fermentations at pH values above the pKa of the carboxylic acid. In this approach, the aqueous carboxylate anion is recovered using anion exchange, followed by desorption and esterification with CO2-expanded alcohols. Using CO2-expanded methanol, we achieved a high desorption yield at 10 bar of CO2 and 20 °C. An ester yield of 1.03 ± 0.07 mol methyl acetate/acetatein was obtained for the combined desorption–esterification at 5 bar of CO2 and 60 °C. The proposed process has low chemical consumption and low waste production. The proposed process works, with a lower yield, for other carboxylates (e.g. lactate and succinate) and alcohols (e.g. ethanol). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]