BEIJING - Chinese researchers have developed a nano material using waste cartons that can remove a toxic heavy metal from water.

The breakthrough has provided a new means to control heavy metal contamination and recycling of waste cartons.

Incidents of heavy metal contamination of water have occurred frequently in China in recent years, and hexavalent chromium, a chemical compound of metal chromium and major cause of heavy metal pollution, can lead to significant risks to human health. There is an urgent need for low cost and high efficiency technology to deal with heavy metal water contamination in China.

Researchers used high temperatures and pressure to create the nano material from waste cartons. The material can be coated with nano-scale iron which can effectively remove hexavalent chromium from water, control the migration of the compound in water sources, and prevent it from being absorbed by plants.

The research, led by Wu Zhengyan at Hefei Institute of Physical Science under Chinese Academy of Sciences, was recently published in the American Chemistry Society academic journal ACS Langmuir.