NSF Award
1047061
This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will address the problem of<br/>a shortage of pure drinkable water by developing a new portable water purification filter coated<br/>with natural polymers. Initially the developed filters will be utilized for use in personal water<br/>purifiers, later expanding the development of the filter for use in municipal water purification<br/>systems. The development of this green technology based water treatment system will result in a<br/>novel water purifier that is inexpensive, fast acting, simple to use, disposable, easily used in<br/>developing countries, and has minimal impact on the environment. Furthermore, there would be<br/>no formation of harmful disinfection by-products.<br/>The broader/commercial impacts of this research are the provision of an inexpensive, all<br/>natural portable water purification system that will provide good safe potable water, particularly<br/>in third world countries. At risk drinking water can contain a variety of pathogens that can<br/>include heavy metals, harmful bacteria, parasitic cysts, cryptosporidium organisms and viruses.<br/>The best methods to date for removing these pathogens are UV irradiation, ozonation, and<br/>boiling/distillation, with each of these water purification techniques requiring energy and support<br/>systems that are not readily available for remote areas and situations. Other more portable water<br/>treatment methods are not as effective, inconvenient, subject to failures that many times cannot<br/>be easily detected, and/or supply poor tasting water. Therefore, there is a great need for the<br/>development of water purifiers that contain natural polymeric coatings that remove and/or kill<br/>diarrheal diseases-causing bacteria and can also remove heavy metals from water. The proposed<br/>all natural water purification system is intended to remove and/or neutralize all of these multiple<br/>water impurity elements. An established water purification company will be a partner in this<br/>project so as to expedite the commercialization of this developed technology into the<br/>marketplace.
