UALR Professor Licenses Water Purifying Technology

A technology invented by a UALR professor has been licensed by a worldwide leader in water purification with the help of the university’s TechLaunch technology transfer office.

Dr. Tito Viswanathan, an organic chemistry professor in UALR’s Department of Chemistry, has created environmentally friendly nanostructured materials that remove phosphates as well as heavy metals including selenium, chromium, copper, lead and zinc.

His company, Synanomet LCC, licensed the technology with AbTech Industries, a global company based in Arizona. According to a UALR press release, AbTech will exclusively use the technology for purifying stormwater and water polluted through other human activities, such as oil, gas and mining fields.

AbTech tested the technology on samples of selenium, a toxic element that is a byproduct of mining processes and that can lead to neurological damage in humans. It now is testing the technology in the field at mining sites and for stormwater applications.

Synanomet was created in order to commercialize technology developed by Viswanathan at the university. Viswanathan has earned multiple patents developing applications of carbon-based materials for water purification.

TechLaunch, which since 2006 has helped UALR faculty members, students and staff commercialize their inventions, executed agreements in intellectual property licensing, contract manufacturing, and research and development.

“Any single one of these agreements alone would have been wonderful,” UALR TechLaunch Director Jeff Stinson said. “From a tech transfer perspective, to have all three agreements secured from an international leader in water treatment management is a home run. It’s a best case scenario.”

Stinson said in a recent interview that while its efforts have resulted in four startups employing 10-15 individuals, most technologies are licensed to an established company that then pays royalties.

In the University of Arkansas System, the first $200,000 in royalties for products developed at the university by faculty, staff and students are divided 50-50 between the university and the inventors over the life of the agreement. The inventors receive 35% of royalties above that amount.