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empowering people. Award: Winner 2012 – ECAR

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© Siemens Stiftung 2015.

ECAR – arsenic-safe drinking water

© Siemens Stiftung 2015.

ECAR – arsenic-safe drinking water

An estimated 60 million low-income people in South Asia are exposed to toxic naturally occurring arsenic every time they drink from their local well. The ElectroChemical Arsenic Remediation (ECAR) will provide an innovative technology to produce locally affordable, arsenic-safe water to families and communities within a sustainable service delivery model. In principle, ECAR is a conventional aqueous electrolysis process with two submerged electrodes, anode and cathode. During the ECAR electrolysis process, arsenic-III is oxidized at the anode to arsenic-V and simultaneously, iron-III-hydroxide as a coagulant, is generated – the process known as electrocoagulation. The formed iron-III-hydroxide flocs are extremely active adsorbents for arsenic-V. The arsenic loaded iron flocs can easily be removed by settling and/or filtration. The process does not require additives and produces only little waste sludge.

© Siemens Stiftung 2015.

ECAR exceeds WHO recommendations for arsenic-safety across diverse groundwater conditions. The envisaged business model is micro-utilities operating at the community level and selling safe water at a locally affordable price, which is feasible considering business costs and a mark-up.

Contact:Ashok GadgilLawrence Berkeley National Lab – USAgadgillab.berkeley.edugadgil@ce.berkeley.edu

© Siemens Stiftung 2015.

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