National Institute of Environment Heal Sciences has reported that consuming arsenic-contaminated water is a significant health issue that might cause several chronic health complications such as kidney, skin, liver, lung, and bladder cancers. Arsenic is a naturally occurring chemical that has been the reason for contamination of ground-based drinking water for a large population worldwide, even in the United States.
To tackle this problem, a research team has designed a low-cost filter with the ability to remove arsenic from household drinking water. The innovation simultaneously brings peace of mind for millions of people who are at constant risk of consuming arsenic-contaminated water around the globe. This is a groundbreaking development in Water Filter Market as this proof-of-concept filter design is novel when it comes to household use. Further, it can not only remove the arsenic from water but also other chemicals like lead.
Building technology to remove arsenic from water is not a new concept and has been done several times before by other researchers as well. However, out of all the products developed, none could be made commercially available as they would be insanely expensive to purchase for a normal consumer. Thus, this study can solve this problem. The researchers proposed a filter design with a two-material approach. Firstly, the arsenic in the water would be restricted from going forward by a fast-absorbing material. After that, the trapped arsenic will go through a second material designed especially for arsenic storage.
Researchers revealed that the new design would be way cheaper to produce than other filters currently. Optimally, the process would occur during the night while people would be sleeping and would supply safe, purified water to the population the following day.
The problem of Arsenic water is a significant one, especially in rural areas, as they are not connected to larger public water systems. For example , in the United States, particularly in a southwest region such as New Mexico and Arizona, where groundwater is considered to be the primary source for drinking. Thus, the region has greater potential for a high concentration of arsenic. In countries like Bangladesh, the problem is equally notable. So, the new water filter would greatly benefit manufacturers and world governments in ensuring that people do not succumb to health problems due to arsenic contents or other chemicals in the water.