No more lead in drinking water!

PPU Umwelttechnik GmbH participates in the ‘TEXAS’ innovation project

Clean drinking water is one of the most important foundations for a healthy life. However, lead contamination poses a serious threat to public health worldwide. At PPU Umwelttechnik GmbH, we are actively committed to developing a sustainable and efficient solution to this problem. As part of the ‘TEXAS’ innovation project, we are working with our partners on a new, resource-saving purification process to remove lead from drinking water. Our goal: a low-energy, waste-free and flexible technology that reliably ensures clean water.

Lead contamination – a global challenge

Lead in drinking water poses a serious health risk that particularly affects children and vulnerable population groups. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), lead exposure led to over one million deaths worldwide in 2017. The main sources of lead in water are outdated pipes, fittings and improperly disposed car batteries. In many regions of the world, there is a lack of legal frameworks and technological options to effectively reduce lead contamination. The economic consequences are enormous: in addition to the direct health effects, high costs are incurred due to medical treatment and economic losses. An efficient and sustainable cleaning process is therefore urgently needed.

Sustainable solutions through innovative alginate technology

The ‘TEXAS’ project relies on an advanced technology for drinking water purification: special alginate fibres that act as cation exchangers and efficiently filter lead out of the water. These fibres are produced using a wet spinning process and then processed into a stable knitted textile fabric. The resulting filter media can be flexibly integrated into different filtration systems. The environmentally friendly properties of the alginates are particularly noteworthy – they are biodegradable and do not leave any harmful residues.

Our contribution as PPU Umwelttechnik GmbH lies in the development of a suitable filter cartridge and the technical realisation of the cleaning process. We ensure that the system is energy-efficient, low-maintenance and particularly suitable for use in regions with limited infrastructure. With our expertise in water treatment, we ensure that the new process achieves maximum efficiency and practicality.

Cooperation for a better future

The ‘TEXAS’ innovation project is a joint endeavour supported by several strong partners. Together with the Faserinstitut Bremen e. V. (FIBRE) and WESOM Textil GmbH, we are working on the implementation of this ground-breaking technology. FIBRE is responsible for developing and optimising the alginate fibres, while WESOM is responsible for producing a robust and material-efficient knitted fabric.

The project is being supported with funding of around 670,000 euros from the Central Innovation Programme for SMEs (ZIM). The initiative was developed within the SAFIR – Separation, Adsorption & Filtration for Industrial Cleaning and Recycling Processes innovation network, which is managed by IWS GmbH. This close cooperation ensures that innovative technologies are not only developed, but also successfully transferred into practice.

Clean water as a global standard

Our vision is to make clean drinking water accessible to all. With the ‘TEXAS’ project, we want to make a decisive contribution to combating lead contamination. The combination of innovative filter technology, sustainable materials and a flexible application concept makes our process a pioneering solution for the global water supply.

As PPU Umwelttechnik GmbH, we stand for sustainable, practical and efficient water treatment solutions. With ‘TEXAS’, we are taking another important step towards a world in which clean water is a matter of course – and not a privilege.

Stay tuned for further updates on this exciting project!