Abstract
A blood purification module is developed with edible agar or Gelrite® for plant tissue culture in which charcoal/enzyme was dispersed. Tap water (or normal saline) is boiled and agar (or Gelrite®) powder was dissolved in it. The solution was hardened with either no additive, activated charcoal or urease in a plastic hard shell with aperforated bottom plate to assemble Module A (Agar only), AC (Agar with Charcoal) or AU (Agar with Urease), respectively. The hardened gel was thrust with a plastic straw 21 times in the flow direction. Aqueous test solution was prepared for the experiment. Bromophenol blue (BPB) concentration decreased only by 10% with Module A, whereas it gradually decreased according to the amount of activated charcoal dispersed in the agar with Module AC moreover, it reached its lower-limit, found by direct use of the same amount of intact activated charcoal. Module AC can also remove BPB and creatinine at the same time from the binary-solute test solution. To reduce urea and creatinine concentrations with one device, Module AUC was also assembled by combining AC and AU modules that should trap creatinine and decompose urea into ammonia and carbon dioxide. A portable artificial kidney system may be constructed by a combination of these modules with a small hemofilter for removing excess water.
