This North Carolina student built a science project exploring how dirty water could be turned into a source of power for tiny batteries

Prakhar Purohit, a student from North Carolina, has earned recognition for a science project built around an unusual idea: making tiny batteries using dirty water.

His project, titled ‘Tiny Batteries from Dirty Water’, was selected as the 2026 North Carolina State Merit Winner in the 3M Young Scientist Challenge. The recognition places Purohit among students across the US whose projects explore problems through science, technology and hands-on experimentation.

According to Young Scientist Lab, the 2026 State Merit Winners have been announced as part of the annual challenge, which encourages students to work on real-world issues that matter to them.


Purohit’s project stands out for connecting two seemingly unrelated concerns — water pollution and the need for small-scale sources of electricity. By exploring the link between them, the project demonstrates how an everyday environmental problem can become the starting point for a scientific investigation.

What did Prakhar Purohit create?

The project is titled ‘Tiny Batteries from Dirty Water’, a name that captures its central idea. Instead of looking at dirty water only as something that needs to be treated or discarded, Purohit explores whether it can be incorporated into a concept for generating electrical power.

Young Scientist Lab has not provided detailed information about the project's design, materials or testing methods. However, its central concept is notable because it brings together environmental science and energy technology.

Small batteries are used to power a range of devices, particularly those that require compact sources of electricity. Purohit’s project examines whether dirty water could play a role in producing power on a similarly small scale.

The idea also aligns with the broader objective of the Young Scientist Challenge, which gives students opportunities to investigate real-world problems through innovation and hands-on learning.

How does dirty water fit into the project?

The project is centred specifically on the potential use of dirty water in a battery-making concept. This shifts the way the material is viewed — from an environmental problem to something that could potentially have another use.

The idea brings together two areas that are often considered separately: water quality and energy generation. By combining them, Purohit’s project asks whether contaminated water can contribute to producing useful electrical power, even on a very small scale.

While the available information does not detail exactly how the battery works, the concept itself highlights an important aspect of student-led science: starting with an everyday problem and asking whether it can be approached differently.

For Purohit, being selected as a State Merit Winner marks an achievement in his young scientific journey. His project also illustrates how a simple question can lead to an investigation that connects environmental concerns with engineering.

What does becoming a State Merit Winner mean?

Purohit was named the 2026 North Carolina State Merit Winner by Young Scientist Lab, with his project included in the organisation’s list of State Merit Winners.

The 2026 winners are working on a wide range of scientific ideas, covering subjects such as smoke detection, traffic signals, lead detection, robotic therapy, plant communication and environmental technology.

Purohit’s project is part of this broader group of student-led experiments, each approaching a different real-world challenge. Together, the projects highlight the variety of questions young students are exploring through science and technology.

The recognition gives Purohit’s ‘Tiny Batteries from Dirty Water’ project a place among these initiatives, while its unusual premise makes it one of the more distinctive ideas in this year’s State Merit Winner list.