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University of Wyoming

UW Technologies Available for Licensing

LICENSED - Various Technologies - A Novel Method to Remove Arsenite and Arsenate from Water - LICENSED

Arsenic contamination of drinking water has been reported in many parts of the world. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has stated that arsenic in drinking water causes cancer in humans and at current concentrations may be equivalent to smoking cigarettes. On January 22, 2001 the EPA adopted a new standard that says public water systems must reduce arsenic concentrations to below 10 parts per billion (ppb) in their water beginning January 23, 2006. As such, water providers have a need for an economical safe method to remove arsenic from drinking water. Further, residential homes obtaining water from wells have a need for a low cost, safe, and efficient point of entry or point of use arsenic removal system.  Researchers at the University of Wyoming have conducted research to address these issues.

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Researchers in the University of Wyoming’s Department of Renewable Resources have developed and filed a patent application (WO2005/028376) on a novel method to remove arsenate and arsenite from water. The method uses inexpensive copper-containing compounds in particulate form to easily remove arsenate and arsenite from human drinking water below the EPA’s required 10ug/L. The method has rapid kinetics, no harmful by-products and is not affected by the presence of other compounds commonly found in water, like sulfate.

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Researchers in the University of Wyoming’s Department of Renewable Resources have also developed and filed a patent application on a fast and easy way to regenerate the aforementioned media once it has been fully bound by arsenic. This regeneration method quickly restores the media so that it can be re-used in municipal or point-of-delivery systems to remove more arsenic.

Renewable Resources Professor, Dr. KJ Reddy works with graduate student Viswatej Attili in the a University of Wyoming laboratory. (UW photo)