Faradine Systems partners with PowerTech Water, Inc. for Phase II of the Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) program to demonstrate the use of a new low-cost water treatment technology called inverse Capacitive Deionization (i-CDI). The effort is a continuation of a Phase I impact study awarded through the National Science Foundation to improve energy efficiency and environmental sustainability of drinking water treatment.

PowerTech Water, Inc. is a Lexington, KY-based developer of cleantech water treatment technologies, co-founded in 2014 by Dr. Cameron Lippert and Dr. James Landon. Dr. Lippert serves as CEO having already managed R&D and technology development & demonstration projects at the Center for Applied Energy Research, while Dr. Landon serves as PowerTech Water’s CTO as subject-matter expert in electrochemical devices, water and wastewater treatment, carbon materials, surface chemistry, and electrochemical engineering. [1]

Faradine Systems’ role will be to design an electrical system prototype that will apply a small electrical voltage (<1.2V) to functional porous carbon sheets to target (absorb and desorb) salt molecules from hard water streams. The aim of this project is to develop a water treatment process using a carbon-based filter “that can soften water streams without significant maintenance or upkeep and providing a water softening solution that does not add to the "throw-away" culture that is common to many water treatment devices” [2]. Use cases for this project will include applications in both food & beverage and industrial environments to demonstrate the benefits and effectiveness of the i-CDI water-softening process against incumbent water treatment techniques.

[1] Meet PowerTech Water’s Team. Management Team Biographies. https://electramet.com/team/

[2] SBIR Phase II: Novel cathode for long-cycling capacitive deionization. Abstract. https://www.sbir.gov/sbirsearch/detail/1192785