Accidental Discovery: Orange Peels Could Suck Mercury Out of Oceans

Scientists in Australia accidentally stumbled on a substance that can remove toxic mercury from the sea. It’s called limonene, and can be found in any orange peel.

Dr. Justin Chalker, a professor of Synthetic Chemistry at Flinders University, and his team, were working with sulfur and limonene to create a red, rubber-like polymer. When they began running tests to measure its potentially harmful impact on the environment, they discovered quite the opposite — the substance can suck mercury right out of water.

http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/accidental-discovery-orange-peels-could-suck-mercury-out-of-oceans/