Heterogeneous Photocatalytic System for Water Remediation

描述(由申请人提供)：我们已经确定了一项第一阶段计划，旨在建立一个系统，通过利用Eltron的PeroxEgen“和专利光催化剂来销毁饮用水中的药物”，该计划将在第一阶段研究中开发。PeroxEgen“是一种即将投入商业使用的过氧化氢和过氧乙酸(PAA)产生设备。在废水中掺入“PeroxEgen”产生的过氧化氢/PAA，将与光催化剂接触，确保目标药物的破坏性氧化。催化剂开发是Eltron的核心优势之一。我们已经开发了30多种专有催化材料。2008年3月9日，美联社宣布，由美联社国家调查小组领导的一项调查显示，供应给至少4100万美国人的饮用水中存在药品和非处方药。尽管自来水公司目前坚称这些水是安全的，但人们对摄入抗生素、抗惊厥药物、情绪稳定剂、性激素和其他一些药物将导致的长期健康影响存在担忧。生活在雌二醇含量低至万亿分之五的市政水域中的鱼类的性别反转是已有记录的影响的较引人注目的例子之一。在E·迈克尔·瑟曼等人的一项开创性研究中，观察到低水平环境暴露于选定的有机废水污染物所产生的微妙的慢性影响似乎令人担忧。此外，环保局还资助了约翰·霍普金斯大学的一项研究，以评估药物和防腐剂对饮用水的影响。尽管目前还不存在去除这种新检测到的污染物家族的监管命令，但正在进行的研究表明，此类法规可能很快就会生效。我们相信他们会的。[即使不是，公众也会越来越多地质疑这些新的化学污染物的水质。]科罗拉多大学(CU)土木、环境和建筑工程系已同意就该项目进行咨询，提供卡尔·林登教授和CU Boulder环境质谱学(CEMS)中心主任迈克尔·瑟曼博士的专业知识。CEMS的仪器包括安捷伦技术公司的液相色谱仪、飞行时间质谱仪(LC/TOF-MS)和LC/MS/MS离子捕捉器。安捷伦TOF仪器的灵敏度可精确到attomol(1 x 10-18摩尔)范围，并提供优于百万分之二的质量精度，这使科学家对他们的数据充满信心，并帮助他们轻松识别他们发现的化合物。基于研究团队的技能和PeroxEgen的高级开发，我们有信心在NIH的分阶段资助下，我们能够生产出一个有效的、商业上可行的系统。 与公共健康相关：自《清洁水法》(1972年)和《安全饮用水法》(1996年)颁布以来，已制定了强制水处理战略，以保护普通民众免受我国供水系统中发现的毒素的伤害。新的毒素以及保护我们免受其危害的立法行动的必要性不断演变，因为我们增加了药品和个人护理产品(PPCP)的消费，我们拥有可以探测到更低水平检测的技术，我们了解了摄入PPCPs的后果(即使是在痕量水平上)，我们深入研究了大量PPCP混合的后果。这项拟议的技术有可能解决各种这些问题，因为它能够分解各种PPCP，并对来自各种病原体的水进行消毒。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): We have defined a Phase I program for establishing a system that will destroy pharmaceuticals in drinking water by leveraging Eltron's PeroxEgen" and proprietary photocatalysts which will be developed in Phase I research. PeroxEgen" is an H2O2 and peracetic acid (PAA) generating device that is nearing commercial readiness. Wastewater, doped with PeroxEgen"-generated H2O2/PAA, will come into contact with the photocatalysts, ensuring destructive oxidation of the target pharmaceutical. Catalyst development is one of Eltron's core strengths. We have developed more than 30 proprietary catalytic materials. On March 9, 2008, the Associated Press announced that an investigation led by the AP National Investigative Team reveals that pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter medicines are present in the drinking water supplied to at least 41 million Americans. While water utilities companies at this time insist that the water is safe, concern exists over the long-term health effects that will result from ingesting antibiotics, anticonvulsants, mood stabilizers, sex hormones and a number of other drugs. Gender-reversal of fish living in municipal waters containing as low as five parts per trillion of estradiol is one of the more high-profile examples of the effects that have been documented. In a seminal study by E. Michael Thurman et al., it was observed that subtle, chronic effects from low-level environmental exposure to select organic wastewater contaminants appear to be of concern. Furthermore, the EPA has funded a study by Johns Hopkins University to assess the impact of pharmaceuticals and antiseptics on drinking water. Although regulatory mandates for removing this newly detected family of pollutants don't exist today, the fact that studies are underway indicates that such regulations could soon be in effect. We believe that they will. [Even if they are not, the public will increasingly question water quality specific to these new chemical contaminants.] The University of Colorado's (CU) Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering has agreed to consult on the program, providing the expertise of Prof. Karl Linden and Michael Thurman, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Environmental Mass Spectrometry (CEMS) at CU Boulder. CEMS houses instrumentation such as an Agilent Technologies Inc. liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometer (LC/TOF-MS) and LC/MS/MS ion trap. The Agilent TOF instrument is sensitive down to the attomole (1 x 10-18 mole) range, and offers better than two parts-per-million mass accuracy, which gives scientists high confidence in their data and helps them easily identify the compounds they find. Based on the skills of the research team and advanced development of PeroxEgen", we are confident that we can produce an effective, commercially viable system under phased funding by the NIH. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Since the enactment of the Clean Water Act (1972) and the Safe Drinking Water Act (1996), mandated water treatment strategies have evolved to protect the general population from toxins that are found in our water systems. New toxins, as well as the need for legislative action to protect us from them, evolve because we increase the consumption of pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs), we have technologies that can probe to lower levels of detection, we learn about the consequences of ingesting PPCPs (even at trace levels), and we delve into the consequences of mixing numerous PPCPs. The proposed technology has the potential to address a variety of these concerns because it is able to decompose a variety of PPCPs as well as disinfect water from a variety of pathogens.