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QuantumSphere, Inc. Research Grant Awarded to Civil and Environmental
Engineering Team at UCLA – Project to Validate QSI-Nano® Materials
for Anti-Microbial Water Purification
Professor Eric M.V. Hoek, of the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering
and Applied Science Selected to Receive Grant for Research Proposal on the
use of QSI-Nano® Materials in Water Filtration Devices
Santa Ana, CA – January 10, 2007 – QuantumSphere, Inc., a leading
manufacturer of nano metals and alloys for applications in renewable energy,
electronics and other markets demanding advanced materials, has announced that
Dr. Eric M.V. Hoek, an Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
and Henry Samueli Fellow at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and
Applied Science, has been selected to receive a research grant from QuantumSphere
to evaluate the use of QSI nanoparticles in water filtration applications.
Anti-microbial nanoparticles, such as silver, already have shown great utility
in the healthcare and clothing industries, and have the potential to increase
the efficiency and effectiveness of water purification. Ongoing research at
UCLA suggests integration of certain nanoparticles into Hoek’s nanocomposite
membranes (now under license from UCLA to NanoH2O, LLC) can lead to more efficient
and effective water filtration and desalination processes. Prof. Hoek and Dr.
Asim K. Ghosh, a postdoctoral fellow in Hoek’s research group at UCLA,
will explore the use of QuantumSphere’s anti-microbial nanoparticles
in nanocomposite membranes designed for water filtration applications.
Dr. Hoek’s work was recently profiled by CNET News writer, Michael Kanellos.
The November 2006 article describes how many scientists believe there will
be a deficit of potable water in the relatively near future. With significant
growth
in the global population over the last century, water consumption has increased
dramatically. Many third world countries lack the infrastructure and controls
to produce adequate amounts of potable water, causing demand to significantly
surpass supply. Lack of safe drinking water increases the likelihood of diseases,
impedes economic growth, and causes crop yields to shrink, according to some
researchers.
Efficient water purification is a hot research topic in governmental, corporate
and academic labs. New purification plants are being planned or are under construction
in India, Europe, Australia and the U.S., among other regions. A $250 million
plant that will ultimately churn out 100 million cubic meters of water annually
for human consumption opened in Ashkelon in southern Israel in August and is
the largest of its kind in the world. In Singapore, the government has begun
a program of turning wastewater into drinking water in its euphemistically named
NEWater project. NEWater will constitute 2.5 percent of the country’s potable
water by 2011.
Earlier this year, QuantumSphere initiated a call for research grant proposals
to partner with universities and sponsor individual or group research through
prototype phase in an effort to accelerate validation and commercialization of
these advanced materials in consumer and industrial applications and generate
licensing rights from the University. The call for proposals was open to graduate
and postdoctoral students involved in full-time research within the University
of California system, Caltech, Stanford and USC during the 2006/07 academic year.
This is the second project that QuantumSphere has funded.
“UCLA Engineering has one of the world’s most renowned academic centers for water
research and we are very excited to be working on such a pervasive topic with
Professor Hoek and his team,” stated Kevin Maloney, CEO, QuantumSphere,
Inc. “Dr. Hoek has clearly demonstrated there is a global market need and
is developing an economically and scientifically viable solution incorporating
QSI-Nano® metals, leveraging his personal, as well as his team’s, expertise
in membranes, nanotechnology, and water purification. Most importantly, the team’s
proposal outlined a solid path to the validation and development of membranes
that can be manufactured and used in near-term consumer and industrial applications.
We are honored to be working with a global leader in water research, and look
forward to a fruitful partnership that will accelerate the technology out of
the university lab and into commercial use.”
Dr. Hoek stated, “There is renewed interest in solutions for water purification,
realizing that not only are we running out of fresh water, but the current
technology has some significant limitations. We are pleased to be working with
QuantumSphere
on this groundbreaking research and look forward to seeing our research put
into practice in the near future.”
For more information, visit www.qsinano.com or contact Dave Holscher, Vice
President, KCOMM, at 949-295-5515 or [email protected]. At UCLA Engineering,
contact Melissa Abraham, Director of Media, at 310.206.0540 or [email protected].
About QuantumSphere, Inc
QuantumSphere is a manufacturer of nanoscale metals and alloys for applications
in portable power, renewable energy, electronics, aerospace, defense and other
markets demanding advanced materials. QuantumSphere’s proprietary technology
enables the production of ultra-pure, highly uniform nanometals and alloys
under 50 nanometers in high volume at commercial prices with the potential
to be utilized in a large number of new applications. QuantumSphere has also
created an extensive intellectual property portfolio around its process capabilities
and end-use commercial applications. QuantumSphere seeks to leverage its market
position to manufacture and ship high-performance catalyst materials and electrode
devices for clean-energy applications such as batteries and micro fuel cells
for portable power and hydrogen generation through electrolysis, among others.
QuantumSphere also works closely with leading universities by funding research
to validate QuantumSphere-Nano materials and generate licensing rights to intellectual
property for disruptive high-value commercial applications. For more information,
please visit www.qsinano.com.