Scientists successfully remove 'gender bending' chemical BPA from drinking water with groundbreaking formula that could be sold worldwide
- BPA, a chemical in plastic bottles, mimics estrogen and affects hormones
- US scientists have developed a way to expunge those chemicals from water
- The breakthrough formula could be marketed worldwide to improve health
A groundbreaking new liquid solution could filter hormone-disrupting chemicals out of drinking water.
Decades of research have shown drinking from plastic bottles that contain bisphenol A (BPA) could be dangerous, since the chemical can affect your hormones and increase your risk of diabetes.
Nonetheless, many of us are not overly concerned by the dangers, and in many parts of the world it is a much safer option than drinking the tap water, if there is any available.
Now, Carnegie Mellon University chemist Terrence J. Collins has developed an approach that quickly and cheaply removes more than 99 percent of BPA from water in a move that has been hailed as a breakthrough.
Decades of research have shown drinking from plastic bottles that contain BPA can be risky. The chemical can affect your hormones and increase your risk of diabetes (file image)
'There is no escape from BPA - for any living creature,' said Collins.
'The massive global use of BPA burdens an already overstrained water treatment infrastructure and most BPA water releases simply never reach a water treatment facility.
'Our approach has high potential to be a much better remediation strategy for BPA-contaminated waste streams.'
BPA, a ubiquitous and dangerous chemical used in the manufacturing of many plastics, is found in water sources around the world.
It is primarily used in the production of polycarbonate plastic but can also be found in all manner of widely-used products, from DVDs and lenses to receipts.
However, the chemical carries significant health risks. BPA mimics estrogen, a naturally occurring hormone, and can affect the body's endocrine system.
Studies in fish, mammals and human cells have shown that the chemical can damage brain and nervous system development, growth and metabolism, and the reproductive system.
Share this article
Concerns over BPA's health effects prompted manufacturers to start making BPA-free products like baby bottles and water bottles starting in 2010. Ironically, many BPA replacements also have similar toxicity to BPA itself.
But more than 15 billion tons of the chemical are still produced on an annual basis.
'BPA replacements have often not been adequately tested despite the fact that testing is easy to do,' said Collins, the Teresa Heinz Professor of Green Chemistry at Carnegie Mellon.
The researchers devised a system which involves a group of catalysts called TAML activators, small molecules that mimic oxidizing enzymes.
When combined with hydrogen peroxide, TAML activators very effectively break down harmful chemicals in water.
In their new study, the researchers explain how TAML activators can safely break down BPA.
Adding TAMLs and hydrogen peroxide to water heavily contaminated with BPA resulted in a 99 percent reduction of BPA within 30 minutes.
It caused BPA to assemble into larger units called oligomers, which clump together and can be filtered out of the water easily.
The nature of the bonds that stick the BPA molecules together doesn't allow the oligomers to revert to BPA.
Crucially, studies by Collins and his collaborators found that once BPA transforms into oligomers, it is not harmful.
The researchers said they hope to test their theory on real-world examples, with a view to rolling out this technology for the global market.
Most watched News videos
- BBC political editor left in disbelief after OBR leaks budget early
- Hong Kong high-rise apartment fire leaves at least 36 dead
- Moment Reeves is handed a phone ahead of her Budget speech
- Parts of towers fall off as inferno engulfs Hong Kong's skyline
- Avalanche hits near Austrian ski resort with multiple people buried
- Awkward moment Susanna Reid left Rachel Reeves floundering
- I wasn't shocked at Trump's peace deal but this is what really got me
- 90-second Budget recap: Key moments from Reeves' statement
- President Trump plans to 'fix' Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool
- Inside Richard Branson and Joan's 1989 wedding
- Worker who killed apprentice releases video he claims shows they're friends
- Terror as fire rages through a tower of apartments in Hong Kong
