P.E.I. researchers turn sawdust into a solution for dirty water

Jenna Banfield · CBC News

· Posted: Oct 31, 2025 3:00 PM EDT | Last Updated: October 31

Researchers astatine UPEI are experimenting with utilizing sawdust to cleanable wastewater, and they anticipation successful the aboriginal they tin usage it to region 'forever chemicals' — similar PFAS.

The task uses sawdust from section mills connected Prince Edward Island and turns it into activated carbon, which is commonly utilized successful household h2o filtration devices.

Yulin Hu, adjunct prof of engineering astatine UPEI, says it works likewise to a sponge.

“Once the contaminants travel in, the contaminants volition enactment wrong of [the] unfastened space,” she said. “So, present you tin region them from the water.”

So far, Hu said they person tested it against synthetic dyes, a h2o contaminant commonly recovered successful the textile industry. The adjacent measurement is to trial it connected existent wastewater from immoderate of P.E.I.’s industries. 

Hu says activated c is simply a precise effectual astatine absorption. (Connor Lamont/CBC)

While researchers person yet to trial its effectiveness against h2o contaminated with PFAS, Hu said determination is simply a anticipation it could assistance Islanders dealing with the chemicals contaminating their drinking water.

A study from the national authorities said vulnerability to PFAS tin beryllium harmful to the body, including the liver, kidneys, immune system, reproductive strategy and tense system.

"The drinking h2o is precise important,” Hu said. “In P.E.I., immoderate of the communities person suffered a batch from PFAS successful the wastewater truthful we wanted to assistance them and past we benignant of deliberation about, what are the solutions that we could travel up with?”

'It's connected us'

Milad Jalilian is simply a PhD pupil astatine UPEI who has been moving connected the task for the past 2 years. 

"It's connected us,” helium said. “We are quality and we are making the h2o dirty, truthful we should cleanable it too."

Jalilian utilized to beryllium a petroleum engineer. He said helium would often spot lipid spills erstwhile moving connected an offshore platform, and that, successful part, yet led him into doing this benignant of research.

Jalilian says his involvement successful doing this benignant of probe stems from his acquisition arsenic a erstwhile petroleum engineer, a occupation successful which helium often saw lipid spills. 'We were making the [ocean water] dirty,' helium says. 'So I was reasoning that... I should cleanable it up.' (Connor Lamont/CBC)

"You're helping the community, you're helping the environment. That feels large erstwhile you spot that."

One of the goals of the task is to make a filter that tin beryllium utilized successful homes and by companies connected an concern level.

Researchers person besides been turning the sawdust into biochar, which is created from earthy discarded materials typically from the agriculture and forestry sector.

Hu says this merchandise could perchance beryllium utilized by farmers to clasp much h2o successful their soil.