Water Purification using TiO2 and Novel Activation Method

Under this Phase II SBIR, Imaging Systems Technology (IST) will optimize and scale up its UV Plasma- shells with Titanium (IV) Dioxide (TiO2) system to produce a low cost, rugged, lightweight, and highly efficient and versatile water purification system. Plasma-shells are tiny hollow gas encapsulating devices ranging in size from 400 microns to 8.00 mm. Under the EPA Phase I SBIR, IST has successfully demonstrated a prototype combining UV-A light emitting Plasma-shells with TiO2 coated bars and its efficiency in the decomposition of methylene blue. The proposed research incorporated the efficiency and speed advantages of a photocatalysis purification system while eliminating its major draw backs.This research will result in the replacement of fragile bulky UV quartz tubes in standard water purification systems with a rugged pack of lightweight Plasma-shells. In the proposed configuration, the UV producing surface area will be increased by several orders of magnitude making the TiO2-Plasma-shell system potentially much more powerful than current purification systems. Adding to the efficiency is the fact that the water will be in close proximity to the TiO2 activated by UV-A plasma-shells, thus providing improved contact between the activated surface and the contaminants. This innovation has broad impact because potable water is one of the most basic of human requirements. Clean water directly affects our health and welfare of every living creature on the planet.The proposed innovation has significant commercial potential. Due to it lightweight, ruggedness, and low cost, it may be configured to serve numerous applications including:Large civil or industrial system that handle large quantities of water;Small portable point of use systems for disaster, humanitarian, or military applications; andIndustrial waste water purification including contaminates produced in during oil and gas recovery.IST has garnered interest from a number of organizations representing each of these applications, including groups from the EPA office in Cincinnati, OH. Beyond water purification, proposed technology is an enabling technology that has applications in purification of air, food, medical instrumentation and photo-curing.