The University of Alabama is to receive a circa $15,000 grant from the U.S. Environment Protection Agency to study the effectiveness of ultraviolet LED lights in killing waterborne pathogens.
The reward is a part of a competition set up to find solutions to help protect the planet and promote sustainability. The University was among 42 educational teams to receive a grant nationwide. The competition is called, People, Prosperity, and Planet competition.
“Since 2004 the funding has provided over $10 million nationally to sustainable projects.”
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The money will be used to further develop and research the initial prototype designs and will be presented in April to be judges by a panel of experts from the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C.
The first round of participants aim to win a further grant which could be as much as $90,000. This money is intended to further elaborate the design and attract and implement commercialization of a finished ‘product’.
The team tested a combination of ultraviolet LED light wavelengths as a more efficient means of sterilizing water, that creates less toxic waste. Since 2004 the funding has provided over $10 million nationally to sustainable projects.