Arsenic in water is a big problem in the developing world. It can cause death within 30 minutes. Worse, it is usually odorless and flavorless, so it’s hard for people to detect. Luckily, Dr. Vicki Colvin, a professor of chemistry and chemical and biomolecular engineering at Rice University, has invented a very easy way to produce a “pollution magnet” that will pull arsenic out of water.
How to Make an Arsenic Magnet
Colvin’s process to make an arsenic magnet is very simple and cheap, which is great for developing countries. Here’s how to make an arsenic magnet:
- Fry a teaspoon of rust in a mixture of oil and lye. This breaks the rust down into nano-sized pieces.
- Use a magnet to pick up the rust dust.
- Put rust-covered pollution magnet in water with arsenic.
- Pull out arsenic.
The system is up to a hundred times more efficient than existing methods, and the simplicity (and cheapness) of its production means that even dirt-poor people can make these arsenic magnets.
Dr. Colvin’s arsenic magnet system could go global as soon as the next five years (if it passes governmental regulations). If her arsenic magnet is mass-produced, it could ease water (and arsenic) worries for millions of people in the developing world. For her invention, I have decided to award her the prestigious EcoJoes Eco-Hero award. Hear hear.
January 8th, 2008 at 12:57 am
What is arsenic?
January 8th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
It’s a chemical that’s used in a lot of insecticides and pesticides that can get into ground water. It’s been used as a poison for hundreds of years, since it’s flavorless and hard to detect
September 20th, 2008 at 3:42 am
its really an easy , interesting & effective method
December 6th, 2008 at 1:33 am
ohyah
April 6th, 2009 at 6:49 am
what is lye and rust actually?plese mail me.
April 6th, 2009 at 6:50 am
is this video available anywhere?
April 6th, 2009 at 3:26 pm
What video do you speak of?
April 6th, 2009 at 3:27 pm
Lye is this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lye , and rust is that rusty stuff that looks like rust on rusty iron.
April 7th, 2009 at 6:08 am
i want to see the video of making pollution magnet.And want to know about rust.
January 15th, 2010 at 7:09 pm
Any arrangement of magnets, produces an average torque of exactly zero if there are no losses.