Researchers at Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have recently developed a new technology to eliminate hazardous pollutants found in drinking water.
A Jerusalem Post report said exposure to chemical compounds known as synthetic organo-fluorine is known to result in long-term health conditions such as "cancer, birth defects, and heart disease."
The technology rapidly eliminates PFAS or organo-fluorine chemical compounds, a pollutant also called forever chemicals due to their environmental persistence, staying intact underground for a very long time and eventually polluting the drinking water.
Specifically, in Israel, exposure to contaminants is monitored, and just last summer, potable water extraction in the Krayiot region was stopped after a high PFAS concentration was discovered.
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A Palestinian boy drinks water from a tap in the town of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip.
2-Process Solution
Even though eliminating such substances from drinking water can be done with comparatively affordable and straightforward adsorption methods, older approaches only transfer the contaminants from the water to the absorbent material, which needs additional purification steps to get rid of the "toxic adsorbed substances."
Additionally, in their research published in the Chemical Engineering Journal, the study authors said these approaches "are not selective."
They can remove substances as well that are advantageous to human health. The researchers introduced two new and promising solutions.
One solution is through the use of oxidation processes, and the other, through the use of targeted polymers that effectively adsorb the contaminating substances. Unfortunately, such technologies have not led to any satisfactory results to date.
Proper Planning Results in 'High Efficiency'
This new study investigated the probability of incorporating the two methods by separating the contaminants with special polymers and then removing advanced oxidation processes.
The findings specified that proper planning results in high efficiency under a great range of acidity and salinity in water.
The researchers said this method of Technion found that the elimination of seven types of FPAS, even when all of them exist in the same unit of fluid, at an efficiency level that reaches 90 percent, and it does so within just a few minutes.
Causing Serious Problems
In October 2021, The Science Times reported that scientists discovered more than 40,000 poisonous "forever chemicals," that could pollute drinking water.
The said report also described PFAS as "man-made chemicals" added to standard products used in homes. However, these products do not break down and can lead to serious health issues.
To address the problems, the Environmental Working Group or EWG has urged the United States Environmental Protection Agency to "take a stronger stance" in restricting the said chemicals to prevent contamination.
As stated in a 2020 Phys.org report, PFAS are poisonous compounds that poison everything, not just drinking water, but food, personal care products, and food packaging, as well.
Practically Present in Every Human Blood
According to scientists, PFAS are practically present in the blood of every human on this planet, even the newborn ones.
Even small amounts of PFAS in drinking water are linked to the immune system's suppression, as well as the elevated risk of reproductive and developmental impairment, cancer, increased cholesterol levels, and other severe health problems.
Reducing the levels of PFAS in water sources remains a nationwide problem. However, scientists have said that it is not impossible to overcome it as it can be done through more extensive tests of surface water and drinking water incorporated with tests of wastewater.
Related information about Technion technology for drinking water is shown on ILTV Israel News's YouTube video below:
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