Role of Nanomaterials in Remediating Environmental Pollutants

The rapid urbanization and industrialization have resulted in the environmental pollution, which is the biggest challenge faced by the society. Remediation is mainly associated with the environment. Environmental remediation is the process of removing pollutants or contaminants from the environment such as soil, air, and groundwater for the safeguard of human health and the environment. There are various technologies involved in remediation such as physical remediation involving processes like filtration, extraction, etc; chemical remediation involving chemical reactions, photocatalysis, etc and biological remediation involving microorganisms and plants. The use of nanomaterials for remediation is called nanoremediation. Nanomaterials reveal better performance in environmental remediation than other techniques used because of their high surface area and the associated high reactivity. Different nanomaterials in various shapes, function as adsorbents, catalysts and sensors for detection and removal of gases, contaminants and organic pollutants. This chapter provides an overview of different kinds of remediation techniques and a detailed discussion on different types of nanomaterials used for environmental remediation.