Magnetic particle technology in environmental remediation and wildlife rehabilitation

Abstract

The use of magnetic particles in environmental remediation and wildlife rehabilitation is currently under investigation at Victoria University, in collaboration with the Phillip Island Research Centre, Victoria, Australia. Iron powder has been shown to be very effective for the magnetic cleansing of feathers and plumage and is almost ideal for this purpose, being non-toxic, a non-irritant and recyclable. Detailed investigations have demonstrated that by varying particle size, particle structure and surface texture, the efficacy of oil removal from feathers and plumage can be successfully manipulated. In this regard, it is possible to identify a grade of iron powder whereby, within experimental error, effectively 100% removal of a variety of fresh contaminants from different matrices, including feathers, can be achieved. Our investigations have been extended to the application of such particles to the successful removal of tarry and weathered/tarry contamination. The results of these investigations have indicated that, for such contaminants, removals ranging from 97-99% may be achieved. Magnetic particle technology may also be adapted for the screening of pre-conditioning agents that can further assist in the removal of tarry and weathered/tarry contamination from feathers. These investigations suggest that magnetic particles could have an important role to play in environmental remediation and wildlife rehabilitation as a clean and effective technology.

Flame spheroidisation of dense and porous Ca2Fe2O5 microspheres

“…17 Magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) microspheres and nanospheres have been investigated for magnetic-induced hyperthermia treatment of cancers 18 and have been employed successfully as contrast agents in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), 15,19 whilst targeted magnetic drug-delivery systems are currently at the pre-clinical stage. 15 MMP have also proved beneficial for environmental remediation, including the removal of heavy metals and radionuclides from contaminated soil and water, and phosphates from wastewater, 15,20 along with oils and chemicals/toxins from the environment. 20 Here, we demonstrate (for the first time) a novel application of the FS process, using Fe 3 O 4 powder/CaCO 3 porogen combinations, to create mixtures of compositionally uniform, porous and dense, magnetic Ca 2 Fe 2 O 5 microspheres, with potential for a range of biomedical and environmental remediation applications.…”

Towards a quantitative indicator of feather disruption following the cleansing of oiled birds

“…These are apparent in the corresponding micrograph image and reflect the greater extent of disruption to the grid pattern caused by the detergent treatment as compared with the magnetic particle treatment (see Figure 8). A very strong correlation between the w/h ratio for feathers treated with detergent and the concentration of detergent has also been shown to exist (Orbell et al, 2007) in the case where the w/h ratio was determined manually using the CW method.…”

“…Magnetic particle technology (MPT) has demonstrated great utility in a range of discipline areas (Safarikova & Safarik, 2001) and is a convenient and quick means by which oil-soaked wildlife can be cleansed (Orbell et al, 2007). This innovative approach has been investigated and developed for the clean-up of oil-soaked species such as the Mallard Duck (Anas platyrhynchos) and Little Penguin (Eudyptula minor) (Orbell et al, 2004).…”

“…This technology has the advantage of being portable and enables oil to be removed immediately in the field, upon first encounter, either directly or with the aid of pre-treatment agents in cases where the oil residues are highly weathered and/or persistent (Ngeh et al, 2012). Two further advantages of MPT technology over detergent-based techniques for oil removal are its high efficiency and its purported ability to invoke less damage to the feather microstructure (Orbell et al, 2007). In relation to exploring the removal efficiency of MPT it has been necessary to develop a quantitative assay (Orbell et al, 1997) that can be used to compare the efficiency of MPT technology with those efficiencies offered by detergent cleansing.…”

Investigations of Properties of Powdered Ferromagnetic Sorbents

“…were used as initial materials. Ferromagnetic sorbents based on iron powders have perfectly recommended themselves when cleaning plumage of the birds getting into oil spills in water bodies [19][20]. Papers [21][22] are describing the "Nefteklin" sorbent used for collecting oil spills from the water surface.…”