Some Options Used In Drinking Water Filtration Systems

By Jordan Schmidt


Inadequate and unsafe water use is one main cause of morbidity and or mortality in the society. Healthy sources of this commodity are therefore required for a successful growth in both social and economic activities. The beauty of clean and safe sources cannot therefore be over emphasized. No single individual would wish to consume contaminated fluids. Concerned authorities have equally employed varying measures intended to attain this goal. One such measure is installation of drinking water filtration systems.

In the present times, all sources need verification through chemical assessment so as to be considered safe. Even what may appear clean might not be necessarily safe for consumption or food preparation. Indeed, minimal standards require that all sources be approved before any harvesting and use is initiated. Potentially harmful components as chemicals, heavy metals, fungi, bacteria and viruses need to be taken care of if present. Their effect could have a far reaching effect and should not be ignored.

Different approaches can be used to make this fluid safe for consumption. Choice of treatment option is dependent upon intended use. Some uses require high degree of purity while others may not call for that kind of purity. Filtration offers a great deal of help eliminating various undesired components that include algae, fungi and bacteria growths. In addition, it eliminates large solids and suspended soil particles.

After removing large suspended items, it is necessary to perform a step by step value addition. This is achieved by filtering resultant fluid from which large suspended solids have been removed. Filtration occurs in steps and sequence. The initial phase is rapid sand filtering units designed to eliminate relatively small undesired components. It is quick and large amounts of fluid can be prepared in a short while. Fluid being prepared passes from top vertically down with aid of gravity leaving behind all the undesired components.

Slow sand filters are therefore a second sand filtering process intended to improve quality and value. It is composed of more fine materials than rapid filtration option. It is relatively slow and a large surface area is required for efficiency. In this process, even very fine pollutants are eliminated and resultant product is considered safe for use even without additional treatment options. All the same, additional care may be necessary to maximize safety.

Filtering process can further be carried out at finer levels intended to eliminate as many pollutants as may be possible. Membrane filters are suitable for this purpose. Despite their effectiveness in isolating many undesired components, they are still unable to control or remove dissolved ions. This implies that undesired heavy metal ions are left in place even when these filers are used.

One main way of controlling dissolved ions is through chemical ion exchange processes. Chemicals like calcium and magnesium ions are removed through an ion exchange process. In this process, least troubling ions are instead discharged into water. Better still, ultra filtration membranes may be very useful in complete separation of heavy ions before fluid is ready for use.

Let all persons be safe. Safety is necessary for disease prevention. It is one way of reducing disease burden on a population.




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