Comatose Torpids

Product Development Department

Daisy M. Baylon; Alina G. Arredondo; Mark B. Smith
Company Chairpersons
123 Q Ave.
El Paso, TX 79912

May 14, 2014


Dr. Teresa Quezada
Director of Technical Writing and Special Projects
The University of Texas at El Paso
500 W. University Ave.
El Paso, TX 79906

Dear Dr. Quezada:

We submit here a proposal in support of our water filter enhancement and modification research
to be conducted under our direction in the Comatose Torpid Product Development Laboratory.

We are requesting adequate funding in the amount of $100,000 in total estimated costs for the
period of June 1, 2014 through May 31, 2014.






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Developing an Efficient Water Treatment Method for Providing Third
World Countries with Clean Water: A Proposal Report


Prepared for: Dr. Teresa Quezada
Prepared by: Daisy M. Baylon, Co-chair
Alina G. Arredondo, Co-chair
Mark B. Smith, Co-chair

May 14, 2014









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Table of Contents

Executive Summary3

Introduction4
Background....5
Recommendation and Benefits...7

References...7















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Executive Summary
On April 6, 2014, the Comatose Torpids were commissioned with coming up with a product or a
modification to a current product. The Comatose Torpids opted to make modifications to water
filtration systems. The water filtration systems are designed to be more efficient and cheaper for
distribution to underdeveloped countries. The target companies for our product are non-profit or
charities that specialize in supplying food and water to underdeveloped countries.
Currently, water filtration systems use physical, chemical, and biological means to remove
impurities from water. The impurities are removed from the water because some of them can be
lethal to humans, and human beings need water in order to survive. Most underdeveloped
countries do not have the technology for mass water purification. That means that the drinking
water in these countries will have impurities which can make the people sick. Some of the
impurities might be toxic chemicals or deadly bacteria. Our organization aims to develop simple
but effective water filters that may be distributed to households in these countries.
Our group was invited to research, propose, and develop a modification to current water filtration
methods. Our modification will be the incorporation of Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) into
the water filtration systems.
To perform this research, we needed to familiarize ourselves with current water filtration
methods and MOFs. One of our members, Mark Smith, is currently conducting research in Dr.
Dino Villagrns chemistry laboratory where MOFs are being synthesized and studied.
Our group also needed to develop a contract for our company, the Comatose Torpids, and
develop an easy to use website. Alina Arredondo drafted the contract on April 11, 2014 and the
other two members approved and all members signed it. Daisy Baylon developed the company
website on April 21, 2014 and the other members provided some input. Mark Smith drafted this
proposal report that details the companys plans, research, and development.
We found that MOFs are an effective material for water filters. Current water filters use sieves,
screens, or packed sand to remove impurities from water. Those current methods arent capable
of removing everything from water, though. MOFs act as molecular nets that can absorb the
smallest atomic and molecular impurities from water. Furthermore, we found that another great
thing about MOFs is that they can be synthesized to form different sizes of molecular nets. This
means that different MOFs can be made to accommodate the absorption and removal of different
molecules or impurities. This technology is simple for use in underdeveloped countries. To
obtain clean water, non-purified water is physically forced through the packed crystalline MOFs
material. The MOFs material absorbs the impurities and clean water comes out through the other
side.
Based off of these conclusions, our company would like to recommend that companies like
Charity: Water and Water.org take an interest in the benefits of our MOFs water filters.



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Introduction
On April 6, 2014, the Comatose Torpids were commissioned with coming up with a product or a
modification to a current product. The Comatose Torpids opted to make modifications to water
filtration systems. The water filtration systems are designed to be more efficient and cheaper for
distribution to underdeveloped countries. The target companies for our product are non-profit or
charities that specialize in supplying food and water to underdeveloped countries.
Currently, access to clean drinking water is a problem in underdeveloped countries. These
countries dont have the technology we have, and therefore they do not have massive water
treatment facilities. Untreated water can have chemical impurities and biological contaminants
that make the water unsafe to drink. According to Water.org 780 million people in the world
lack access to clean drinking water. Some of those people are in Sub-Sahara Africa where they
have the lowest drinking water coverage of any region (displayed in Figure 1).


Figure 1.

These people are more susceptible to getting water related diseases and poison from chemical
water impurities. In fact, 3.4 million people die each year from water related diseases.
Water.org, Water Is Life, and Charity: Water are some of the many organizations that work on
providing clean drinking water to people in underdeveloped countries. In order to clean
contaminated water, water filters are needed. So there is a big demand from these organizations
for simple and effective water filters. Our company is working on modifying current water
filters by using Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) as a filtering material.
5


Background
Water Filters
There are many types of water filter systems that serve different purposes. Their general purpose
is to remove impurities from the water. In our research we are focusing on sediment water filters
because they are more related to the modified product we are developing. In a sediment water
filter the untreated water goes through filter material where impurities are removed and clean
water leaves the filter. Below is a figure of a sediment water filter (Figure 2). The filter material
tends to be packed sand, screens, or sieves.


Figure 2.

What we are trying to do is modify the current type of sediment water filter so that more
impurities are absorbed or removed from the water. Our modification basically consists of
making a different and better kind of filter material and plugging that material into the water
filter. This different material is a crystalline material called a Metal-Organic Framework (MOF).
Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs)
MOFs are basically one big molecule composed of vast networks or arrays of units of metal ions
coordinated to rigid organic molecules. These networks of metal ions and organic molecules can
form large two-dimensional and three-dimensional structures. MOFs are known for being good
catalysts in chemical reactions, and they are also known for having great electrical conductivity.
However, they property of interest for our water filters is the MOFs low density. They are a
porous material. The porosity of MOFs gives them the appearance of a cage at the molecular
level (Figure 3). The metal ions are at the vertices of the little cubes and the organic molecules
are the edges of the little cubes that make up the whole MOF in Figure 3.
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Figure 3.

This property is great because other smaller molecules or atoms can fit within the pores, and
these smaller particles get stuck there. The MOF essentially acts as a cage that traps smaller
particles. Depending on the MOF type, the size of the pores can range from fitting large
molecules to fitting small individual atoms. Some MOFs are known to fit and trap hydrogen (the
smallest atom). Figure 4 displays an example of this particle trapping property.

Figure 4.

In the figure the big yellow particle is trapped within the Metal-Organic Framework cage.
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Recommendation and Benefits
We have seen that MOFs porous property allows them to absorb smaller particles. This is what
we need for our water filters. The MOFs should absorb unwanted impurities and leave clean and
allow clean water to flow through. We recommend doing chemical analysis on untreated water
in the underdeveloped countries (i.e. Sub-Saharan regions) to find out what particles are common
in the untreated water. With that knowledge we can synthesize different kinds of MOFs that
have different pore sizes. With the different pore sizes, the different kinds of common particles
or impurities in the untreated water can be removed. The MOF filter material should remove
impurities more efficiently than the typical filter material used in sediment water filtration
systems. Better water filters are needed because there are not a lot of sources of clean water
However, the type of metal ions and organic ligands used in the MOF making is important. We
do not want the MOF filter material to dissolve in water or react in it. Still our group would like
to recommend this MOF water filter product to anybody interested in a simple method of water
treatment. Most likely this product will fill the need of those organizations that work to provide
underdeveloped countries with clean drinking water. It will fit their need because it is simple, it
is just a different kind of filter material. Simple is important for these organizations because they
are going to need water filters in massive quantities for the large amount of people without a
source of clean water.
The benefits our organization will receive from the production of this item is the thought that, as
a member of society, we are helping our fellow man.

References
Estimated with data from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply
and Sanitation. (2012). Progress on Sanitation and Drinking-Water, 2012 Update.

Batten, SR; Champness, NR; Chen, X-M; Garcia-Martinez, J; Kitagawa, S; hrstrm, L;
O'Keeffe, M; Suh, MP; Reedijk, J (2013).
Terminology of metal-organic frameworks and coordination polymers. Pure and Applied
Chemistry 85 (8): 1715.

Baylis, John R. (1959). Review of Filter Bed Design and Methods of Washing. Journal
AWWA. 51:11 1433-54.

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Czaja, Alexander U.; Trukhan, Natalia; Mller, Ulrich (2009). Industrial applications of metal-
organic frameworks. Chemical Society Reviews38 (5): 12841293.

Hazen, Allen. (1930). Jour. American Water Works Association. 22:9, 1268-70.