Completely biodegradable filtration system for waste metal recovery from aqueous solution

About this technology

Overview

Rapid socio-economic development and technological advancement has made the hazardous chemical components of end-of-life electronics waste (e-waste) an imminent challenge. Conventional extraction methods rely on energy-intensive processes and are inefficient when applied to recycling e-waste or waste streams that contain mixed materials and small amounts of metals. NASA Ames Research Center has developed an inexpensive biological approach to removing or adsorbing a target substance or material, for example a metal, non-metal toxin, dye, or small molecule drug, from solution. Using a substrate such as fungal mycelium or chitin, with a peptide, the target substance is isolated and removed or recovered. This approach has a variety of useful applications, from cleaning water sources or recovering chemicals from aqueous solutions to minimize waste.