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Aquaporin Inside®

Water optimization
in its purest essence

Biology
Chemistry
Physics

The nature-inspired Aquaporin Inside® technology gets its uniqueness from combining no less than three disciplines from the world of natural sciences: biology, chemistry, and physics.

The result is high-performing and energy-saving water purification that is merciless to contaminants.

Biology
Our membranes incorporate a layer of natural aquaporin proteins which makes them the only biomimetic membranes in the world leveraging industrial-scale biotechnology. Aquaporin proteins are nature’s own water channels, found in all living cells, where they act as super-efficient, super-selective highways for water molecules. 

Through innovative protein engineering, we create building blocks that contribute to producing superior water quality while reducing energy requirements.
Chemistry
We use chemistry to control the selectivity and compatibility between the different layers of our membranes as well as to encapsulate and protect the aquaporin proteins. 

With chemistry as part of our core technology, we ensure antifouling, stable, and high-performing membranes.
Physics
To create the ultimate membrane design, we use physics. 

Perfecting the thickness, density, and positioning of our membrane layers is key to creating a state-of-the-art water purification technology. 

Physics ensures the components of our membranes are in harmony, resulting in optimal performance.


Learn more

A super highway for water

What is it, really?

Aquaporin proteins are specialist water channels, existing in the membrane of all living cells. They can be found in every living organism, from plants and animals to human beings, and they are essential to all life on Earth.

Without aquaporins there would be no life on Earth.

Placed within the cell membrane, aquaporin proteins transport water – and only water – in and out of the cell. Billions of years of evolution have made them extremely efficient and highly selective, like a superhighway for water.

Essentially, aquaporin proteins are far better than any manmade water filter. One square meter of synthetic manmade membrane can filter around 50 liters of water per hour. One gram of aquaporins can filter 700 liters per second.

This natural technology is incorporated into all our products to enable fast, energy-efficient, and natural water filtration such as:

  • Industrial effluent treatment
  • Food & Beverage concentration
  • In-home water purification
  • Wastewater treatment
For more info – visit Industrial

How does it work?

In simple terms, traditional synthetic water filtration membranes are dense polymeric sheets containing tiny holes. These holes are micron-to-nanometer size and only allow very small particles to pass through. In contrast, Aquaporin Inside® membranes harness nature’s tremendous capability for selective molecule transport.

The membranes mimic the outside of a cell with aquaporin proteins in a stabilizing membrane layer.

Thanks to their specialized natural architecture, these aquaporin proteins allow water to pass through. This makes them faster and more selective than traditional synthetic water filtration membranes.

Aquaporin Inside® membranes are commercially available as flat sheet or hollow fiber, for both forward osmosis (FO) and reverse osmosis (RO) applications.

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Take a deeper look

A drop of water looks clean and pure until you take a closer look. 

Watch our technology film and follow us into the world of aquaporin proteins. See how water is transported in and out of the cells through the aquaporin proteins – and how we apply the proteins to our technology.

High rejection
Very high rejection rates significantly increase permeate water quality, even from the most difficult process water. This enables greater reuse of water within industrial processes, less pollution, and lower disposal costs.
Energy efficient
With the exceptional efficiency of our Aquaporin Inside® products, less pressure is required to drive water across the membrane. This reduces energy requirements in both forward and reverse osmosis applications.
Natural process
Aquaporin Inside® technology mimics nature’s own water purification process – often without heat or high pressure. When used for food and beverage concentration we retain more of the original ingredient’s natural nutrients, flavors, and aromas.
High flow rates
The exceptional efficiency of the Aquaporin Inside® products enable excellent flow rates. This results in faster and more efficient water filtration, across applications.

Technology
Contact

For any enquiries or questions regarding our technology and related projects, please contact our Deep Tech department or book a meeting.
Book a meeting
Torsten Høybye Bak Regueira
Chief Technology Officer
Direct: +45 82 30 30 82
Dr. Alec Michels
Lead Specialist
Direct: +45 53 55 55 35

The Aquaporin
technology blog

If you are interested in knowing more about Aquaporin's technology, you can read our latest technology blog posts below.

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