Description:
Lehigh University is actively looking for partners to commercialize a new
method for rapidly identifying the presence of toxic heavy-metal contaminants in
groundwater. Decades of mining for heavy metals such as lead, zinc and cadmium
have produced abandoned mines across the U.S., each of which has the potential
to pollute nearby groundwater sources. (Many metals are essential nutrients in
tiny quantities, but produce toxic effects at higher concentrations.) Detecting
such contamination typically requires pretreatment of the samples to be tested,
and frequently involves either expensive and complex laboratory devices or
cheaper instruments with short half-lives and limited precision. By contrast,
the Lehigh method involves a simple solid-state sensor based upon a new hybrid
inorganic material that can detect heavy metals in water -- without pretreatment
-- quickly and accurately.
ADVANTAGES
The new toxin sensors offer a variety of advantages over current techniques,
including:
- Fast, accurate measurement readouts via simple pH tests
- High sensitivity to low toxin concentrations
- No need for expensive instruments or additional specialty chemicals
- Inexpensive and operationally straightforward operation
APPLICATIONS
- Municipal water-treatment screening
- Suspected groundwater contamination
- Safety screening of water used in agriculture, livestock raising and fish
farming
TECHNOLOGY
The invention is a novel hybrid inorganic material consisting of hydrated
iron oxides and calcium magnesium silicate that can be ground and placed into
the base of a test bed. As water is passed through the bed, the silicate
hydrolyzes it, producing hydroxyl ions that render it slightly alkaline, while
the iron oxides pull dissolved heavy-metal atoms out of solution. When the
adsorbed level of heavy metal reaches a "breakthrough" concentration, the toxins
draw hydroxyls out of the water, leading to a measureable rise in sample acidity
(i.e., a drop in pH value). The pH level of water at the end of test-bed columns
containing different ratios of oxide to silicate can thus indicate the presence,
concentration and type of heavy metals in the original sample.
STATUS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
The invention has been validated as a detector of heavy metals such as zinc
and lead. The hybrid material is currently being further refined. A patent
cooperation treaty (PCT) application has been filed.
Arup SenGupta's Lehigh Page