One-third of the world's population lacks access to clean drinking water, a figure that could rise to 50 percent in 2025.
There are plenty of methods for purifying water, but they need energy. Something that is in short supply in the world's poorest areas where the shortage of drinking water is greatest.
A solution to the problem may come from the University of Texas at Austin. Researchers there have developed a tablet that can purify a liter of water in an hour. All you have to do is drop the tablet into the contaminated water and then wait.
The tablet consists of a hydrogel and particles of activated charcoal. It generates small amounts of hydrogen peroxide, which kills 99.999 percent of the harmful bacteria in the water.
"Our hydrogel can have a major impact in alleviating the shortage of clean drinking water in the world because it is easy to use, very efficient and mass-produced," said Guihua Yu, associate professor at the University of Texas at Austin and one of the researchers behind it. the tablet, in a press release.
The research team is now working to make the tablet even more effective so that it can also purify water from viruses and other contaminants in addition to bacteria. They are also investigating how they can commercialize the tablet into a product that can be spread to areas that need cheap and straightforward water purification. Since the raw materials in the tablet are affordable, and the production process is simple, the researchers hope to develop a very cheap product.
Image: Pixabay / Arek Socha
