NIT Rourkela Researchers Find Jackfruit Peel Can Remove Fluoride from Water

Researchers at the National Institute of Technology Rourkela (NIT Rourkela) have developed a material that can remove excess fluoride from contaminated groundwater at a low cost. They have used activated carbon made from jackfruit peel and modified it with zirconium to improve its fluoride-capturing ability. The patented material offers a promising approach to addressing a drinking water challenge that affects communities across India.
Based on the lab-scale tests, the research team has estimated the synthesis cost at approximately Rs. 37 per gram, based on the electricity and chemicals used.
According to a report published by the WHO, excessive fluoride in drinking water can cause health problems including dental and skeletal fluorosis, affecting both children and adults. Fluoride contamination has been reported in groundwater in several parts of the country, making affordable and sustainable water treatment an important public health priority.
While there are multiple conventional methods to remove fluoride from groundwater, they all have certain limitations for wider adoption. For example, the reverse osmosis method discards a large amount of water in the treatment process and removes beneficial minerals like calcium and magnesium. On the other hand, processes such as ion exchange and activated alumina use harsh chemicals, making them non-eco-friendly.
To address these limitations, the NIT Rourkela research team converted discarded jackfruit peel into activated carbon.
Explaining the technology, Prof Susmita Misra said, “We prepared activated carbon from discarded jackfruit peel and modified it with zirconium to improve its ability to capture fluoride from water. The material showed promising results in laboratory tests, removing over 90% of fluoride within approximately 10 minutes under the tested conditions.”

Prof. Susmita Mishra and Dr. Pratima Minz.

The research team, including Prof. Susmita Mishra and Dr. Pratima Minz, Research Graduate, NIT Rourkela, has secured a patent for the developed technology (Application No. 202531080242, dated 25 August 2025).
In lab-scale tests, the developed material achieved more than 90% fluoride removal within approximately 10 minutes at fluoride concentrations of around 1-5 milligrams per liter. The research team recorded removal efficiencies exceeding 90-97% within 10-20 minutes under the tested conditions. These findings indicate the material's potential for applications in drinking water treatment, including in regions where groundwater fluoride levels pose a concern.
The technology assumes significance, particularly in rural and semi-urban areas where access to reliable treatment infrastructure is limited. It holds the potential to support decentralised water treatment solutions at a community level. Additionally, the use of an agricultural by-product supports a waste-to-resource pathway, thus promoting a more sustainable approach to water purification. 
As the next step, the research team now plans to develop a physical prototype and assess the practical deployment, long-term performance, and operational costs of the developed material.
“In the long term, the technology could contribute to water treatment solutions for communities in fluoride-affected regions, subject to further testing and validation, ” Prof Mishra said.