Osorb
Encyclopedia
Osorb is a swellable, organically-modified silica or glass capable of absorbing volatile organic compounds and other contaminants from water. The glass was discovered by Dr. Paul L. Edmiston and is trademarked by ABSMaterials, Inc.
, discovered Osorb while working on a sensor to detect trinitrotoluene. This specific glass, at the time being studied by Dr. Edmiston and an undergraduate, Colleen Burkett, exhibited a very unusual characteristic: the glass immediately swelled with the addition of neat acetone
. Dr. Edmiston continues to examine Osorb's capabilities and characteristics in a variety of field applications.
, chlorinated solvents, and other contaminants and oils from water. The Osorb can then be thermally regenerated for reuse, and any absorbed chemical can be recollected. There are no toxic daughter products and no solid waste removal, and in some cases, the pollutants are completely reduced to harmless salts and gases. As a result, Osorb is generally more energy- and cost-efficient and more sustainable than other prevalent remediation methods.
), no toxic daughter products, and no waste that needs to be landfilled.
Osorb embedded with zerovalent iron
is used to remediate groundwater for in situ
injections. Another version of the material embedded in palladium
is used for ex situ remediation.
, surface
, and municipal water." ABSMaterials, Inc.
currently applies Osorb to its water treatment systems, which include in situ
Osorb injections, ex situ VOC-Eater units, and bioswale
/bioretention
systems.
, PCE
or related chlorinated solvents. The Ohio EPA
conducted successful testing at a TCE plume from a demised industrial site In West Lafayette, Ohio
, the US EPA
has included Osorb as a suggested material for this type of remediation.
(NSF) and US Department of Energy
SBIR funds to demonstrate effectiveness in treating complex oil field
waters. The DOE's National Energy Technology Laboratory completed testing that "confirmed [Osorb] can remove more than 99 percent of oil and grease from water." The NSF has also produced a video of the inventor, Dr. Paul Edmiston, demonstrating the effectiveness of the treatment. The company has two mobile units being demonstrated at various sites where produced water
is being processed. A separate business entity, Produced Water Absorbers, is conducting these pilots.
ABSMaterials, Inc.
ABSMaterials, Inc. was founded in February 2010 by Mr. Stephen Spoonamore and Dr. Paul L. Edmiston. ABSMaterials, Inc. is based on Dr. Edmiston's scientific discovery, Osorb.-History of discovery:...
History of discovery
Dr. Paul Edmiston of the College of Wooster in Wooster, OhioWooster, Ohio
Wooster is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Wayne County. The municipality is located in northeastern Ohio approximately SSW of Cleveland and SW of Akron. Wooster is noted as the location of The College of Wooster...
, discovered Osorb while working on a sensor to detect trinitrotoluene. This specific glass, at the time being studied by Dr. Edmiston and an undergraduate, Colleen Burkett, exhibited a very unusual characteristic: the glass immediately swelled with the addition of neat acetone
Acetone
Acetone is the organic compound with the formula 2CO, a colorless, mobile, flammable liquid, the simplest example of the ketones.Acetone is miscible with water and serves as an important solvent in its own right, typically as the solvent of choice for cleaning purposes in the laboratory...
. Dr. Edmiston continues to examine Osorb's capabilities and characteristics in a variety of field applications.
How it works
The material is extremely absorptive, but it does not absorb water. As a result, it is able to scavenge volatile organics, hydrocarbonsHydrocarbon
In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons from which one hydrogen atom has been removed are functional groups, called hydrocarbyls....
, chlorinated solvents, and other contaminants and oils from water. The Osorb can then be thermally regenerated for reuse, and any absorbed chemical can be recollected. There are no toxic daughter products and no solid waste removal, and in some cases, the pollutants are completely reduced to harmless salts and gases. As a result, Osorb is generally more energy- and cost-efficient and more sustainable than other prevalent remediation methods.
Absorbing the targeted compounds
Osorb is capable of capturing "a wide range of neat, dissolved, or vapor-phase organics from water." The process of absorption is mechanical rather than chemical, as the molecules expand to pull virtually any uncharged, organic molecule into their matrix. At the nano-level, the flexibly-linked particles function like a sponge that can be rinsed and reused. Osorb is observed to swell up to 8 times its own weight and maintains its structural integrity up to 20,000 times its weight.Recovering absorbed substances
Osorb "can be easily regenerated over 100 times. Absorbed contaminants can be removed by mild thermal treatment or solvent rinsing. Any absorbed organics can then be properly disposed of or recycled." The entire cyclical process of use and reuse produces zero toxic air discharge (unlike air strippingAir stripping
Air stripping is the transferring of volatile components of a liquid into an air stream. It is a chemical engineering technology used for the purification of groundwaters and wastewaters containing volatile compounds....
), no toxic daughter products, and no waste that needs to be landfilled.
Embedding glass in metals
When embedding Osorb with reactive metals, the material can catalytically dechlorinate certain halogenated contaminants. "Chlorinated solvent plumes are captured in the Osorb glass matrix and forced against a metal catalyst. The catalyst reaction reduces the organic pollutants to salts and harmless byproducts."Osorb embedded with zerovalent iron
Zerovalent iron
Zerovalent iron and zero.valent metals have a variety of applications ranging from filters to electrodes to trenches. One of the emerging uses for ZVI is iron wall remediation...
is used to remediate groundwater for in situ
In situ
In situ is a Latin phrase which translated literally as 'In position'. It is used in many different contexts.-Aerospace:In the aerospace industry, equipment on board aircraft must be tested in situ, or in place, to confirm everything functions properly as a system. Individually, each piece may...
injections. Another version of the material embedded in palladium
Palladium
Palladium is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pd and an atomic number of 46. It is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston. He named it after the asteroid Pallas, which was itself named after the epithet of the Greek goddess Athena, acquired...
is used for ex situ remediation.
Uses of Osorb
The central use for Osorb continues to be the remediation of "groundGroundwater
Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water. The depth at which soil pore spaces or fractures and voids in rock...
, surface
Surface water
Surface water is water collecting on the ground or in a stream, river, lake, wetland, or ocean; it is related to water collecting as groundwater or atmospheric water....
, and municipal water." ABSMaterials, Inc.
ABSMaterials, Inc.
ABSMaterials, Inc. was founded in February 2010 by Mr. Stephen Spoonamore and Dr. Paul L. Edmiston. ABSMaterials, Inc. is based on Dr. Edmiston's scientific discovery, Osorb.-History of discovery:...
currently applies Osorb to its water treatment systems, which include in situ
In situ
In situ is a Latin phrase which translated literally as 'In position'. It is used in many different contexts.-Aerospace:In the aerospace industry, equipment on board aircraft must be tested in situ, or in place, to confirm everything functions properly as a system. Individually, each piece may...
Osorb injections, ex situ VOC-Eater units, and bioswale
Bioswale
Bioswales are landscape elements designed to remove silt and pollution from surface runoff water. They consist of a swaled drainage course with gently sloped sides and filled with vegetation, compost and/or riprap...
/bioretention
Bioretention
Bioretention is the process in which contaminants and sedimentation are removed from stormwater runoff. Stormwater is collected into the treatment area which consists of a grass buffer strip, sand bed, ponding area, organic layer or mulch layer, planting soil, and plants...
systems.
Remediation of TCE, PCE, and chlorinated solvents
Osorb is in early-stage or pilot-stage commercial testing. The most common usage is the clean-up of TCETrichloroethylene
The chemical compound trichloroethylene is a chlorinated hydrocarbon commonly used as an industrial solvent. It is a clear non-flammable liquid with a sweet smell. It should not be confused with the similar 1,1,1-trichloroethane, which is commonly known as chlorothene.The IUPAC name is...
, PCE
Tetrachloroethylene
Tetrachloroethylene, also known under its systematic name tetrachloroethene and many other names, is a chlorocarbon with the formula Cl2C=CCl2. It is a colourless liquid widely used for dry cleaning of fabrics, hence it is sometimes called "dry-cleaning fluid." It has a sweet odor detectable by...
or related chlorinated solvents. The Ohio EPA
Ohio Environmental Protection Agency
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is a government agency in the state of Ohio charged with maintaining environmental quality. It was created on October 23, 1972 when previously separate environmental programs where combined into a single department.-Mission statement:"To protect the...
conducted successful testing at a TCE plume from a demised industrial site In West Lafayette, Ohio
West Lafayette, Ohio
West Lafayette is a village in Coshocton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,313 at the 2000 census.-History:West Lafayette was laid out in 1850 by Robert Shaw and William Wheeler. In 1855, the Steubenville and Indiana Railroad was built through the new town...
, the US EPA
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...
has included Osorb as a suggested material for this type of remediation.
The treatment of produced water, flowback water and hydraulic fracturing water
The Osorb material has been funded by National Science FoundationNational Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
(NSF) and US Department of Energy
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
SBIR funds to demonstrate effectiveness in treating complex oil field
Oil field
An oil field is a region with an abundance of oil wells extracting petroleum from below ground. Because the oil reservoirs typically extend over a large area, possibly several hundred kilometres across, full exploitation entails multiple wells scattered across the area...
waters. The DOE's National Energy Technology Laboratory completed testing that "confirmed [Osorb] can remove more than 99 percent of oil and grease from water." The NSF has also produced a video of the inventor, Dr. Paul Edmiston, demonstrating the effectiveness of the treatment. The company has two mobile units being demonstrated at various sites where produced water
Produced water
Produced water is a term used in the oil industry to describe water that is produced along with the oil and gas. Oil and gas reservoirs have a natural water layer that lies under the hydrocarbons. Oil reservoirs frequently contain large volumes of water, while gas reservoirs tend to have smaller...
is being processed. A separate business entity, Produced Water Absorbers, is conducting these pilots.