Researchers in Israel and US Select Top Four
Nanotech Projects for Water Purification

Collaborative effort targets most promising areas
for water treatment using nanotechnologies.

JULY 10, 2006 – Water researchers from leading institutions in Israel and the U.S. have targeted four cutting-edge projects for collaborative research between the two countries.

Target projects focus on nanotech-based solutions that were proposed at a spearhead
bi-national workshop in mid-March:

• Development of self-assembling, porous polymer-based ultra-filtration membranes with special coatings, that exhibit higher flux and higher resistance to contamination as well as robust molecular sieving abilities.
• Development of coatings with antimicrobial capabilities that can minimize biological attachment and biofilm formation, to be applied to membranes used to treat drinking water and wastewater.
• Study of mixed metal oxide nanostructured materials for the destruction of biological toxins in surface waters and groundwater using photocatalysis and oxidation.
• Development of whole-cell microbial biosensors to detect minute metabolite excretions from newly-forming biofilms, optimizing membrane maintenance and extending lifetimes.

The above were selected from a total of 12 nanotech-based projects, and are expected to result in commercial applications within five to ten years. Total collaborative research is valued at $600,000 and will be funded on a matching basis.

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