2023-08-09 11:40:00
Concerned about the thousands of pesticides that are sprayed on agricultural fields and end up spreading to neighboring regions and contaminating watersheds, Melissa Ortiz, a former high school teacher and student of industrial design at the California College of the Arts (USA), developed natural tool capable of diagnosing water contaminated by toxic substances.
According to Fast Company, the Colores del Río (“colors of the river” in Portuguese) tool, is a natural device made from red cabbage waste from a local farming community. Proving its effectiveness, the tool won the “outstanding social critique” award at the Biodesign Challenge 2023.
Read more:
Colores del Río is able to detect contaminated water (Image: Disclosure)
Colors of the River: How does it work?
The choice of material for creating the device may seem out of the ordinary, but the creator has a precise justification.
Cabbage stores natural chemicals that cause the vegetable to change color when it comes into contact with acidic water (red-pink) or alkaline water (yellow-green); , grind into powder and, at the end, mix the xanthan gum substance, which is used for bonding; In the end, the material was pressed in a silicone mold, resulting in an object that symbolizes the pattern of the Salinas River.
The project is still a prototype in the growth phase, but Ortiz intends to direct Colores del Río to Xinampa, a non-profit organization focused on innovation in biology and biotechnology.
The creator estimates that the device will become a powerful community engagement tool that can be used by amateurs to collect data and understand the water quality in regions close to their homes.
“I think the curiosity of high school students who are about to go to college and are looking at what they want to do for these topics early on really sets them up for impact,” says Ortiz.
Have you watched the new videos on YouTube of the Digital Look? Subscribe to the channel!
#Cabbage #waste #device #detects #contaminated #water