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New Device Detects Cyanotoxins in Drinking Water A Drexel University professor is developing a device to quickly detect cyano toxins in lakes, rivers and streams. Funding from the U.S. EPA is enabling a Drexel University professor to wrap up five years of research into a new device that can rapidly detect a harmful class of toxins that threatens drinking water. Professor Raj Mutharasan is the principal researcher and developer of an ultra-sensitive device capable of detecting, within minutes, the presence of cyanotoxins from algae in rivers, lakes and streams used for drinking water. His goal is to get the device commercially manufactured to help prevent potentially wide-spread damage caused by cyanotoxins. Mutharasan's technology would allow water test results in 10 to 15 minutes, whereas the existing method to test for cyanotoxins can take up to three days, leaving communities open to exposure to contaminated water. Drexel University Press Release,
September 30, 2008 |