# Fiber adsorbent for remediation of multisolute contamination in drinking water.

> **NIH NIH R43** · CHEMICA TECHNOLOGIES, INC. · 2020 · $159,012

## Abstract

Project Summary
The water treatment product developed in this SBIR program will give more people the
opportunity to live healthier lives and will strengthen communities by increasing available
potable water resources. The contamination of drinking water is an age-old problem which has
been made worse in recent decades by man-made toxins (pharmaceuticals, plasticizers,
pesticides, disinfectant by-products, etc.) entering drinking water reservoirs via wastewater,
agricultural runoff, storm water, and polluted air and soil. Exposure to these toxins through
drinking water is leading to chronic, complex diseases; the burden of which falls primarily on
socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. Removal of these toxic compounds is
imperative to protect health.
Traditional adsorption technologies which are relatively straightforward and cost-effective do not
have the structural sophistication to allow for the simultaneous removal of a broad spectrum of
toxic organic chemicals. Other purification technologies (i.e. reverse osmosis membranes and
hydroxyl radicals) have failed to provide a simple and cost-effective means for residential areas
to remove the many different organic chemicals now found in drinking water supplies. What is
missing from the $3B US residential treatment market is a simple and cost effective POU
product for the simultaneous removal of toxic organic and inorganic contaminants.
Through this SBIR project, Chemica aims to bring a timely new tool to the field of water
treatment/purification that specifically targets difficult to remove contaminants in an easy-to-use
and affordable manner. This will be achieved through applying Chemica’s proprietary surface
modification techniques to a robust carbon fiber substrate. Chemica’s novel fiber is easily
scalable and can be tailored to meet users’ specific needs. Through previous efforts Chemica
has developed adsorbents to target either organic toxins or inorganic toxins. The goal for this
SBIR program is to develop an adsorbent capable of simultaneous adsorption of BOTH organic
and inorganic toxins in a highly efficient mechanism, which will be achieved through the
following Specific Aims: 1. Ionic Liquid Assisted Preparation of Functionalized Fiber;
2. Characterization of Toxic Organic and Inorganic Chemical Removal by ACFs.
Key words: drinking water, emerging contaminants, toxicity, adsorbent, carbon fiber,
pharmaceuticals, plasticizers, pesticides, disinfectant by-products, heavy metals, lead,
coordination chemistry, organic chemistry, VOC, arsenic, remediation, ionic liquids

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9910154
- **Project number:** 1R43ES031443-01
- **Recipient organization:** CHEMICA TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Takuji Tsukamoto
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $159,012
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-04-24 → 2021-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9910154

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9910154, Fiber adsorbent for remediation of multisolute contamination in drinking water. (1R43ES031443-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9910154. Licensed CC0.

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