Natural Cost-Effective Solution to Pharmaceutical Contamination and Drinking Water

Overview

January 10, 2024 A Natural Cost-Effective Solution to Pharmaceutical Contamination in Drinking Water A. Gunasekaran, D. Ellsworth High Technology High School, 765 Newman Springs Road, Lincroft, NJ 07738 Abstract Pharmaceutical contamination is commonly found in recycled water sources and is difficult to purify. Integrating Ayurvedic techniques, a medical system that originated from India that has been used for thousands of years, such as utilizing Strychnos potatorum seeds, could provide a solution to this modern-day issue. In this research study, the impact of varying concentrations of Strychnos potatorum seed powder on the absorbance of Tylenol (Acetaminophen) in water was investigated. This seed powder significantly affected the absorption of a harmful pharmaceutical, Tylenol, when exposed to water at increasing concentrations. Concentrations of 1 mg, 2 mg, 3 mg, and 4 mg of seed powder were incorporated into distilled water along with Tylenol. Using a NanoDrop spectrophotometer, the absorbance of Tylenol was measured after being exposed to variable amounts of Strychnos potatorumâ€™s seed powder for 24 hours. The NanoDrop results displayed the correlation between the increase of powder in the solution and the decrease of Tylenol absorbance. The powder was shown to decrease the absorbance of Tylenol by up to 91% when 4 mg of Strychnos potatorum seed powder was used. Future experiments may involve replicating the study on a larger scale, utilizing greater quantities of seed powder in larger bodies of water.