Efficient removal of a model textile dye from sea water by Polydopamine coated Diatomaceous Earth

An old and cheap bulk material, Diatomaceous Earth silica microparticles (DE), the most abundant source of mesoporous silica acting as a low-cost natural sorbing material, has been coated with a mussel-inspired polydopamine (PDA) layer to define a method of modelling the removal of a dye from sea water. Here we report a general proof of the presence of PDA on silica particles together with a simple and strategic kinetics of removing the model Rhodamine 6G dye from sea water.