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Every day when ecoSPEARS CEO and co-founder Sergie Albino 麻豆精品 S�03 walks into his office in Altamonte Springs, Florida, he is reminded of his mission, displayed prominently on the wall: 麻豆精品 S淲e imagine a world where every human being has access to clean water, clean food and clean air. 麻豆精品 S�

What some may consider unattainable, the aerospace engineering alum 麻豆精品 S� who was named among the Orlando Business Journal 麻豆精品 S檚 2021 CEOs of the Year 麻豆精品 S� has a solution to help make that world a reality.

Since he started ecoSPEARS in 2017 with exclusively licensed technology from NASA, Albino and his team design and develop sustainable methods to extract and eliminate polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins and other persistent toxins from the environment permanently. Many of them ended up in our soil and waterways because until they were banned in 1979, PCBs were legally used in everyday goods.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 麻豆精品 S淢ore than 90% of human exposure to dioxins is through the food supply, mainly meat and dairy products, fish and shellfish. 麻豆精品 S� Dioxins are highly toxic and can cause reproductive and developmental problems, damage the immune system, interfere with hormones and also cause cancer. 麻豆精品 S� WHO predicts that by 2025, half of the world 麻豆精品 S檚 population will be living in water-stressed areas.

As a UCF student, Albino interned at Kennedy Space Center (KSC), where he later ended up as a payload hardware engineer. While working there and pursuing his MBA from Rollins College, he met KSC environmental engineer Jackie Quinn and UCF alumni Phil Maloney 麻豆精品 S�07 麻豆精品 S�13PhD and Robert DeVor 麻豆精品 S�03 麻豆精品 S�08PhD, who eventually invented the SPEARS (Sorbent Polymer Extraction and Remediation System) technology.

麻豆精品 S淚 thought the SPEARS technology had a lot of legs, 麻豆精品 S� Albino says. 麻豆精品 S淸What piqued my interest] was the challenge of 麻豆精品 S� solving a world mission of clean water. 麻豆精品 S�

The SPEARS technology uses clusters of plastic spikes filled with ethanol to absorb toxins. The spikes are then pressed into the sediment where they can stay until remediation levels are achieved 麻豆精品 S� even if that takes years 麻豆精品 S� before they are removed, and the harmful toxins are responsibly destroyed on-site using UV or chemical destruction of the contamination.

麻豆精品 S淲e aren 麻豆精品 S檛 choosing options that would further create contamination, 麻豆精品 S� Albino says. 麻豆精品 S淲e would never want to trade off clean water or clean soil for clean air. That 麻豆精品 S檚 not the right path. 麻豆精品 S�

The company, which has 12 full-time employees and six interns 麻豆精品 S� many of whom are Knights 麻豆精品 S� has run pilot tests in California, Hawaii, Guam, Washington and Sweden.

While the SPEARS technology is specific to sediment remediation in bodies of water, the company has since expanded its efforts to soil washing remediation (ecoTERRA) as well as industrial wastewater and groundwater remediation (ecoCUBE).

麻豆精品 S淚 would love to see this company grow to be a tool for change in the world when it comes to health and public safety, the environment, and sustainability, 麻豆精品 S� Albino says.

Who

Sergie Albino 麻豆精品 S�03

The Pitch

Green and sustainable technology for a cleaner environment

Inspiration

NASA-developed technology, co-invented by UCF alumni Phil Maloney 麻豆精品 S�07 麻豆精品 S�13PhD and Robert DeVor 麻豆精品 S�03 麻豆精品 S�08PhD

Backers

EIA Social Enterprise Fund, Kirenaga Partners and Northwestern University

Where you can find it