Biopolymers for Eco-Safe Remediation

Development of treatment technologies for the removal of pollutants from water, soil, and air is one of the most important areas of environmental science. Biopolymers could be potential tools for environmental remediation. These compounds are high molecular weight molecules with repeated sequences, which may become reactive sites suitable for modifications, creating an opportunity for chemical functionalization. Depending on the contained functional groups, biopolymers such as chitosan, cellulose, carrageenan can bind metals or soil particles and can form cross-linking networks with other polymers. Biopolymer networks can bind to metals on one side, and soil particles on the other side, trapping the contaminants in very stable complexes. This chapter intends to make a general approach on the potential applications of biopolymers previously mentioned in the remediation of water, soil, and air in an ecologically safe way.