Nano-enabling of strong-base ion-exchange media via a room-temperature aluminum (hydr)oxide synthesis method to simultaneously remove nitrate and fluoride.

This study demonstrated a new room-temperature method for synthesizing aluminum (hydr)oxide material inside the pores of strong-base ion-exchange resin to fabricate a novel class of hybrid media capable of simultaneously removing nitrate and fluoride as model groundwater contaminants. The aluminum (hydr)oxide hybrid media was fabricated by reducing aluminum ion precursors with borohydride within ion-exchange resin at room temperature, followed by exposure to environmental oxygen. The hybrid media was characterized, and its performance to simultaneously remove nitrate and fluoride was determined in simple and complex water matrices using short-bed column tests operated under conditions realistic for point-of-use systems. Results revealed that, although not optimized, aluminum (hydr)oxide hybrid media was able to simultaneously remove nitrate and fluoride, which was not possible with neither unmodified strong-base ion-exchange resin nor conventional granular activated alumina alone. Future modifications and optimizations of this relatively simple and inexpensive fabrication process have the potential to yield an entire class of hybrid media suitable for point-of-use/point-of-entry water treatment systems.