IIT Roorkee Innovates Eco-Friendly Water Treatment Method
Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee have created a groundbreaking method to remove dangerous plastic chemicals from water. This new approach does not depend on traditional chemical dosing or energy-heavy treatment processes. Instead, it offers a sustainable path for future water purification technologies.
How the System Works Across Different Water Sources
The eco-friendly system performed efficiently in various water types. These included tap water, river water, and wastewater. The study demonstrated this effectiveness in real-world conditions.
In their research titled 'Nanoenhanced Bacterial Stimulation of Rhodococcus jostii RHA1: A New Pathway for Sustainable Degradation of Phthalate in Complex Water Matrices', the team showed how engineered nanophosphates can activate bacteria. These bacteria, known as Rhodococcus jostii RHA1, break down phthalates even when water lacks nutrients.
The Role of Engineered Nanophosphates
The researchers used specially designed nanophosphate particles. These particles mainly consist of magnesium ammonium phosphate phases like struvite and dittmarite. They enriched these particles with essential nutrients.
- Phosphorus
- Magnesium
- Calcium
- Trace metals including iron, manganese, zinc, copper, and cobalt
These nanophosphates acted as slow-release nutrient reservoirs. They stimulated the growth of Rhodococcus jostii RHA1 bacteria. Once activated, the bacteria used phthalates as a carbon source. They rapidly degraded these chemicals and mineralized them into harmless end products.
Rapid Degradation Without Conventional Media
Professor Nitin Khandelwal from the institute's hydrology department led the study. He stated, "The bacteria achieved nearly complete phthalate degradation within three hours even in the absence of conventional growth media." This finding highlights the method's efficiency.
The study has been published in ACS ES&T Water. This is a peer-reviewed international journal of the American Chemical Society.
Addressing Health and Environmental Risks
Phthalates are chemical additives used to increase plastic durability. They continuously leach from plastics into rivers, groundwater, and wastewater. These chemicals disrupt the endocrine system and pose long-term risks to human health and aquatic ecosystems.
Conventional treatment methods face several challenges.
- Advanced oxidation processes are costly and high in energy.
- Membrane filtration often requires significant resources.
- Chemical dosing can generate secondary pollution.
- Biological treatment usually fails in real water systems because pollutant-degrading bacteria remain inactive in nutrient-poor conditions.
A Scalable and Safe Solution
The researchers believe their nano-assisted bioremediation strategy could provide a scalable and environmentally safe solution. This approach addresses the growing pollution challenge from plastic chemicals. It offers a cleaner alternative to existing methods.
This innovation from IIT Roorkee represents a significant step forward in sustainable water treatment. It combines nanotechnology with natural bacterial processes to tackle a pressing environmental issue.
