Press Release: RGU Scientists Awarded 1.2 Million Euros: Tuesday 28-Nov-00

Two scientists at the University have been awarded 1.18 million euros (around £700,000) from the European Commission for an eco-friendly project to develop the first instrument in the world that will effectively remove and destroy deadly toxins from water. Professor Peter Robertson, Head of the University's Centre for  Environmental Engineering (based at the School of Mechanical and Offshore Engineering) and Dr Linda Lawton from the Environmental Science & Technology Research Group (based at the School of Applied Sciences) have pioneered a technique that will form the basis of the new three year project, and are leading an international consortium in the development of the photocatalytic reactor, which will obliterate cyanotoxins in drinking water.

Professor Robertson said: 'Water is becoming an increasingly scarce  resource across the world, and much of this limited supply is becoming  increasingly nutrient-enriched, which supports the growth of toxic cyanobacteria. These organisms produce extremely poisonous compounds, which kill both wild and domestic animals that have drunk contaminated water.

'In recognition of the potential risk to human health posed by these cyanotoxins, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared a maximum limit of microcystin-LR in drinking water that is safe for human or animal consumption. Since these toxins are very stable, traditional water treatment techniques will not effectively destroy them and a new method is now absolutely vital to maintain WHO standards.'

This new method is the result of a collaboration between two areas of    research at the University. Dr Linda Lawton takes up the story: 'My research at the School of Applied Sciences showed that traditional chemicals were not removing toxins from water effectively, while Professor Robertson's work revealed that if you shine light on the  non-toxic titanium dioxide it becomes very destructive. Titanium dioxide  is a harmless common paint pigment that is also used in suntan lotions and some food products. If you shine light on contaminated water in the  presence of titanium dioxide, it removes the compound and therefore the toxicity from the water.'

Professor Robertson and Dr Lawton first made this discovery in 1997,   after which they were approached by representatives from other  institutes and organisations keen to contribute towards the development of the pilot industrial project. The Institute for Solar Energy Research in  Hanover, Germany, the company ecoTRANSfair GmBH, also in  Germany, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel are all now  involved in the project, which is being funded under the European  Commission's Energy, Environment and Sustainable Development programme.

RGU itself will also be developing a new biosensor to detect the toxin in  water. Dr Lawton said: 'This biosensor will be the first of its kind in the  world and will use molecular biological techniques to develop  recombinant antibodies to discover whether or not toxins exist in a  particular sample.' Dr Lawton will be working closely with Dr Andy Porter from the University of Aberdeen on this aspect of the project.

Professor Robertson added: 'This sustainable technique will destroy virtually anything in the water, including E.coli bacteria and other  microbes, pesticides and herbicides. That is why it such an important  emerging environmental technology and why we are so excited by its  potential applications.'
 
 

Visit the School of Mechanical and Offshore Engineering Website at:  http://www.rgu.ac.uk/subj/mes/ and the School of Applied Sciences  website at: http://www.rgu.ac.uk/aps/home.htm