Document Type

Honors Thesis

Abstract

Millions live without safe water despite modern technology. For those living in first-world countries, access to large-scale water purification or bottled water is common. However, problems arise for those living in villages where ground water is severely contaminated with heavy metals, particularly Arsenic (As). While large-scale processes can remove arsenic, there is a lack of portable, and affordable devices that can remove these contaminants. Our portable arsenic filter is not only affordable, but also interchangeable. The interchangeability allows for a decrease in waste of filter material, an important fact given that the cost of arsenic filters is much higher than other filters. Through inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), we were able to show the efficacy of our device and the importance of variable filter heights during the filtration process. The designed filter is able to remove arsenic from as high as 100 ppb to safe WHO and EPA approved levels with minimal waste of filter material.

Publication Date

5-1-2016

Language

English

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