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ust the thought of trations of recreational drug metabomaking a diaper or lites in treated water from a number of sanitary pad from cities (Addiction 2014, DOI: 10.1111/ JELLYFISH is enough add.12570). Inhabitants of to make most people’s western and northern regions toes curl. But jellyfish are are the biggest drug users indeed the main component in Europe, the researchers of a material being developed by found. The team analyzed Israeli start-up Cine’al for such wastewater from 42 Jellyfish: The new applications. cities across Europe thing in The firm’s technology involves for the presence of diapers. breaking down the jellies’ flesh and cocaine, amphetamine, adding undisclosed nanomaterials cannabis, and ecstasy to create what the company says is a highly breakdown products. absorbent, biodegradable material named The chemists used liquid chromatography Hydromash. As for the jellyfish sting, Cine’al coupled with mass spectrometry to map is adamant that it neutralizes this potential drug consumption. problem during processing. The technology Benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cois based on research by Shachar Richter, a caine, was most prevalent in Amsterdam, chemist at Tel Aviv University. Antwerp, London, and Zurich. Its levels Hydromash’s usefulness builds on a suggest a cocaine use rate of 400–850 mg jellyfish’s impressive hygroscopic capability. per 1,000 people per day. The researchers Typically, 90% of a jellyfish is composed of noted that people in northern European water. “Their bodies are formed from matecities had the highest consumption of rial that can absorb high volumes of liquids and hold them without disintegrating or dissolving,” Capitalnano told the Times of Israel in recent weeks. The Israeli nanotechnology investment firm is raising funds to scale up Cine’al’s technology. Hydromash absorbs several times its volume in liquid and breaks down in less than 30 days, which is faster than any other biodegradable product, Capitalnano states. Absorbent consumer products such Wastewater’s secrets: Analytical as diapers are typically made with acrylic chemists in Zurich examine a sample rich in recreational drug metabolites. acid derived from petrochemicals, which are not biodegradable and often end up in landfills. Disposable diapers account for amphetamine, and the Czech cities of about 4% of solid waste, according to the Prague and Budweis were awash with the Real Diaper Association, a U.S. nongoverndrug. Western cities were identified as the mental organization promoting reusable locations for the highest consumption of cloth diapers. ecstasy, and the Serbian city Novi Sad was Cine’al is currently in discussion with number one for cannabis use, followed, not companies based in South Korea and the surprisingly, by Amsterdam. U.S. to establish Hydromash manufacturing Headed by Christoph Ort from the Swiss facilities in regions with large populations Federal Institute of Aquatic Science & of jellyfish. If Cine’al could set up plants in Technology, in Dübendorf, Switzerland, the areas where jellyfish are so prevalent that study supports traditional surveillance data they disrupt tourist beaches or the aquatic gathered through surveys. And according food chain, the firm’s production technolto Ort and colleagues, the advantage of the ogy could have a secondary environmental wastewater testing approach is that it can benefit. Not so toe-curling after all. measure drug use more quickly and fill in locational data gaps. he wastewater in Europe might not be thick with jellyfish, but in some areas it does appear to be FLOODED ALEX SCOTT wrote this week’s column. WITH NARCOTICS. Analytical chemists Please send comments and suggestions to across Europe have identified high
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JULY 21, 2014
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analytical
SHUTTERSTOCK
JELLYFISH DIAPERS, COCAINE IN THE WATER
