Water scientists have developed a more effective method to remove organic pesticides from drinking water, potentially reducing health risks associated with contamination. This breakthrough comes as global pesticide use has surged by 62% in the past two decades, raising concerns about these chemicals entering our water supply and potentially causing cancer.
Currently, powdered activated carbon (PAC) is used to remove organic pesticides from drinking water. However, this process is expensive, time-consuming, and not entirely effective. Researchers from the University of South Australia and China have conducted experiments to improve this method significantly.
Professor Jinming Duan, a water researcher from the University of South Australia, collaborated with Dr. Wei Li from Xi’an University of Architecture & Technology and other Chinese colleagues on this study. Their findings, published in the journal Chemosphere, show promising results for more efficient water treatment.
Smaller Particles, Bigger Impact
The research team discovered that by reducing the size of PAC particles from the current commercial size of 38 μm (micrometers) to just 6 μm, they could achieve remarkable improvements. This size reduction allowed them to use up to 75% less powder to remove six common pesticides from water samples.
Despite their smaller size, these 6 μm PAC particles are still large enough to be filtered out after the adsorption process. This ensures that they don’t end up in the drinking water after removing toxic pesticides.
Prof Duan emphasizes the importance of this research, stating, “It’s therefore critical that we develop cost-effective treatment processes to ensure our waterways remain safe.”
The Growing Pesticide Problem
The need for more effective water treatment methods is becoming increasingly urgent. In 2021, approximately 3.54 million metric tons of pesticides were applied to agricultural crops worldwide, according to the Statista Research Department.
Even more concerning is the fact that only about 10% of pesticides actually reach their target pests. The majority of these chemicals remain on plant surfaces or enter the environment, including soil, waterways, and the atmosphere.
Long-term exposure to even low levels of pesticides – primarily through diet or drinking water – has been linked to increased risks of cancer and other diseases in toxicological studies. Prof Duan stresses, “This is why it is important to reduce their levels to as low as feasibly possible.”
The researchers are not stopping at pesticides. They hope to explore how these super-fine activated carbon particles could be used to remove other harmful substances from water, such as toxic polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and perfluorinated compounds (PFCs). These chemicals, found in many consumer products, have been associated with adverse health impacts.
As water pollution is projected to increase in the coming decades due to population growth and industrial development, this research offers a glimmer of hope. By making water treatment more efficient and cost-effective, we may be able to ensure safer drinking water for millions of people worldwide.
The full study, titled “The effectiveness and feasibility of ball-milled powdered activated carbon (BPAC) for removal of organic pesticides in conventional drinking water treatment process,” is available in the journal Chemosphere.