LYNNTECH INC. — Department of Health and Human Services SBIR Phase I: NIEHS

Description

PROJECT SUMMARYArsenic in drinking water poses a serious health hazard to tens of millions of peopleespecially in parts of the world where the arsenic concentrations far exceed theppb guideline value set by the World Health OrganizationAccording to a recent studyapproximatelyM people in the conterminous U Suse water from domestic wellsmillion out of themillion peopleare predicted to be using wells with arsenic concentration andgtg LA large number of liverlungand kidney cancer cases as well as the dermal conditionssuch as hyperkeratosis and depigmentation are connected to arsenic ingestionThe most devastating case of chronic arsenic exposure is found in BangladeshSince the spatial distribution of arsenic in aquifers of the region is highly variablethe ability to distinguish high and low arsenic wells through rapid and reliable testing in the field is criticalArsenic is second only to lead as the main inorganic contaminant in the original National Priority List of Superfund sitesIt is also one of the toxic materials regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery ActRCRAThereforethe need also exists for arsenic monitoring at Superfund sitesRCRA landfillsfacilities handling arsenic containing wastesand sitesHowevera reliablequantitative and easy to use sensor for determination of arsenic in drinking water especially at low ppb levels is not currently availableConventional methods for determination of arsenicsuch as ICP MS and ICP AESare labor intensivetime consumingand expensivewhile colorimetric tests are not reliableMost of the currently available colorimetric test kits also use highly toxic chemicals containing mercury or lead and also produce highly toxic gas arsine during the testLynntech proposes to develop a simplesafe and easy to use device for rapid determination of arsenic in drinking waterThe proposed device utilizes electrochemistry for interference removal and quantitative determination of total inorganic arsenicarsenatearseniteThis system will only require the user to inject an aliquot of water into the device and take a readingAdditional merits includeaccurate quantification of arsenic over a wide rangeppb ppmease of handlingstorage and transportationlong shelf life and a low cost PROJECT NARRATIVE Arsenic in drinking water poses a serious health hazard including cancer and severe dermal conditions to tens of millions people around the worldHowevera reliablequantitative and easy to use sensor for determination of arsenic in drinking waterespecially at low ppb levelsis not currently availableThe goal of the projectthereforeis to develop a simpleaccurate and sensitive device for rapid quantification of arsenic in water