Scientists develop book that turns contaminated water into drinkable

There are millions of people in the world who do not have access to safe drinking water, and according to Lily Kuo of the Quartz portal, in sub-Saharan Africa alone that number reaches 358 million. With this in mind, a group of researchers spent several years developing a book that, in addition to providing useful information on water safety, has pages that act as a decontamination filter.

According to Jonathan Webb of the BBC, the book's pages contain silver and copper nanoparticles that can eliminate more than 99% of bacteria in water. The novelty has been successfully tested in 25 contaminated sites in South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, Haiti and Bangladesh, and analyzes of samples collected at these sites have shown that after “literary treatment” the water is of the same quality as water. drinking water coming out of US taps.

As lead researcher Teri Dankovich explained, the pages were tested with water collected from a sewage-contaminated ditch - which contained millions of bacteria - and yet 99% of the sample's microorganisms could be eliminated.

The book provides instructions in English and local languages ​​to educate the population, and water can be poured directly onto the leaves to be filtered. Each page can decontaminate up to 100 liters, which means that each volume can meet a person's need for drinking water over a period of approximately four years. See the following demo video:

* You can enable subtitles in Portuguese in the video menu.

At the moment, the books are being produced manually by the researchers themselves, but they are seeking support to increase production and make volumes reach the communities that need them so much.