James A. Smith

Professor Smith’s research activities include the development and testing of point-of-use drinking water technologies for the developing world.  He is the primary inventor of the MadiDrop+ (www.madidrop.com), a silver-ceramic tablet that purifies 10-20 liters of drinking water per day for 12 months (over 7000 liters of water).  The MadiDrop+ has been commercialized by Silivhere Technologies and is being used in more than 40 countries.  He has also developed new inventions in silver-ceramic filtration technologies and in partnership with the UVA Center for Global Health, the UVA Jefferson Public Citizens Program, and the University of Venda, he has led the creation of two ceramic filter production facilities in rural South Africa through the PureMadi initiative (www.puremadi.org).  These facilities employ over 25 local South African residents who manufacture and sell pot-shaped ceramic water filters.  Professor Smith is also currently studying the synergistic effects of silver with other common disinfectants, the effects of these disinfectants on mosquito larvae, and the development of electrolytic processes to introduce silver and copper into drinking water for disinfection.