ABSTRACT
In recent times, metal ions pollution has been significantly increased due to growing industrialization. Specific metal ions show a rise to a significant threat to the environment and human organisms because these are highly toxic, present almost everywhere, and are non-biodegradable. Hence, it is a necessity to remove these metal ions. Numerous approaches have been initiated as chemical precipitation, electrochemical reactions, ion exchange, reverse osmosis, etc. to remove these metal ions; nevertheless, it is observed that these methods need to be cost-efficient and environmentally safe. On the other hand, adsorption techniques using solid adsorbents are the most efficient methods for metal ions removal in aqueous media. In this regard, polymeric foams have gained immense importance as adsorbents as these can be tuned to achieve degradable properties and an environmentally friendly nature. However, the polymer-based nanocomposite foams have more enhanced properties and significantly boost the metal ion removal efficiency. In this concern, this chapter focuses on the recent developments of the varieties of polymer-based nanocomposite foams and their application to removing metal ions to minimize pollution.
