ETH Meets You at Expo Milano 2015
What is the source of water on earth; the risks associated with earthquakes in alpine glaciers; and how can we assure clean water supplies in megacities? Visitors to the Swiss Pavilion, Expo Milano 2015 during the Zurich Exhibition (17.06 - 02.08) can find out how ETH Zurich researchers seek answers to these fundamental questions.
Water - The Source of Life
Life on earth depends upon water – our most valuable natural resource. While water may seem an abundant resource, more than 97% of the world's water resources are in the sea and two-thirds of the remaining fresh water is trapped in glacial ice and snow. Taming rivers, designating protection areas, and treating water for human consumption, mankind uses fresh water in rivers and lakes for the production of food and energy; for transportation and recreation in households and industry. While water enables life in its manifold forms, it also threatens life with floods, tsunamis, and storm surges.
Researchers at ETH Zurich seek answers to fundamental water-related questions: What is the source of water on earth; the risks associated with earthquakes in alpine glaciers; and how can we assure clean water supplies in megacities and developing countries? Visitors to the Swiss Pavilion during the Zurich Exhibition at Expo Milano 2015 can find out how ETH Zurich researchers seek answers through their study of glacial icequakes, agroecosystems, geochemistry, and much more.
DrinkPure
Roughly 780 million people around the world have no access to clean drinking water. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 3.4 million people die from water-related diseases every year. ETH Zurich student Jeremy Nussbaumer has set out to make a contribution to solving this problem. Working with researchers from a group led by Wendelin Stark, head of the Functional Materials Laboratory, the 23-year-old spent a year researching a membrane filter and developing the prototype for DrinkPure.
external pageDrinkPure, a revolutionary filter designed to produce drinking water, is now on display as part of ETH Zurich's contribution to the Zurich Exhibition in the Swiss Pavilion at Expo Milano 2015. The membrane, filters contaminated water up to ten times faster than ordinary products currently on the market removing bacteria, viruses and odors. Due to its unrivalled performance, this small and lightweight filter can be screwed on basically every PET bottle. The filter membrane is produced by the ETH Zurich spin-off company external pageNovamem LLC in Zurich, Switzerland. The final assembly and distribution takes place with global partners on-site enabling affordable and safe drinking water “wherever you go.”
