Clean, potable water is hard to come by when outdoors. This is where portable water filters or purifiers help disinfect and clean water sourced from lakes, rivers, or streams. But this floating capsule sets itself apart from conventional water filters with its self-powered design.
According to the device’s operating principle, as published in Nature Water, it doesn’t use batteries or chemical additives. Instead, it requires manual shaking to effectively eliminate organisms, including E. coli, Bacillus subtilis, and other virus surrogates. A quick three-second shake is all it takes before it floats in wild water.
Shaking the floating capsule generates enough power to auto-analyze the water and activate disinfection. As it bobs and floats, the water rubs against its surface, creating an electrostatic charge (similar to what happens when you rub a balloon on your hair) that kills microbes.
The outside surface of the capsule features microscopic polymer ‘nanorods’ that create minuscule yet intense local electric fields strong enough to damage microbes. They break open bacterial membranes, destroying microbes in a process called electroporation.
The floating capsule converts manual shaking into electromagnetic induction. It powers the internal electric field and sensor that detects TDS (Total Dissolved Solids), mostly ions such as salts and minerals, and activates Bluetooth transmission. When TDS levels show an acceptable level of chemical safety, the capsule autonomously starts disinfection. If the water measures below 250 milligrams of TDS, then it’s a green light.
This device can clean a liter of water in 20 minutes with a three-second shake and complete disinfection (>6.0-log removal) in four liters of water in over 120 cycles. The canister, however, can’t handle chemical contaminants, such as arsenic spills, pesticides or industrial pollutants.
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Images courtesy of Nature Water
