Arsenic occurs naturally in rocks, soil, water, air plants and animals. According to the EPA, international studies have linked long-term exposure to arsenic in drinking water to cancer of the bladder, lungs, skin, kidneys, nasal passages, and liver and prostrate. The EPA recently (October 31, 2001) reduced the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for arsenic in drinking water from 50 parts per billion to 10 parts per billion. Thus there is a need for POU device, which will allow small drinking water systems to easily and inexpensively retrofit existing systems. Lynntech proposes to develop a technology, which will allow removal of arsenic from drinking water to less than 10 ppb. Lynntech will develop a compact under-the-sink unit, which will remove arsenic using a highly efficient sorbent material capable of selectively binding arsenic from its aqueous solutions. Lynntech has developed a series of proprietary compounds, which have been tailored to selectively remove Arsenic using state of the art molecular modeling software. During Phase I, Lynntech will investigate the immobilization of promising compounds onto an inert substrate. Successful immobilization will allow the extractions to be used in a simple column system on beads, filter material, or membranes. These resins will be tested for their selectivity and capacity towards As removal under different conditions. The commercial applications for the POU device are in households, schools, hospitals, recreational areas etc. The device is reliable, has a long filter life (1 year), is easy to install, maintain and use. As envisaged, the production cost of the device will be approximately $14. This makes it 75 percent less than the EPA projected annual cost of $60 per household to meet the new standards. The POU device can also be integrated with Lynntech's proven disinfection technology using ozone / photocatalysis to provide for sterile water. The device can also be scaled up to be used in a POE application or scaled clown to make it portable.
