Meet Vick Tan: The Minnesota student who turned a teabag into a low-cost arsenic filter

A small teabag may not seem like much of a solution to polluted drinking water, but for Minnesota student Vick Tan, it became the centre of a science project that went far beyond the classroom. Tan helped develop a simple-looking pouch designed to capture arsenic from contaminated water, using a mix of cellulose fabric, crushed eggshells and magnetic iron oxide particles. The idea earned Tan third place in the Medtronic Innovation Award category at the Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair in 2025. A year later, the work appeared in a peer-reviewed paper in ACS Omega, where researchers reported that the most effective version of the teabag removed more than 98% of arsenic from a laboratory solution. The project also explored whether the bags could be reused, and how cheaply they could be produced.How the Bemliese teabag uses eggshells and magnetic iron oxide to remove arsenicTan's project first drew attention in Minnesota through the state's science fair circuit. According to Eden Prairie Local News, Tan was among two Eden Prairie students recognised at the Minnesota State Science & Engineering Fair held in St Paul on March 28, 2025. Tan received third place in the Med...