Manufacture of a low-cost ceramic microporous filter for the elimination of microorganisms causing common diseases

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. Simonis ◽  
A. K. Basson
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Pathogenic Bacteria ◽  
Suspended Solids ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Slip Casting ◽  
Casting Process ◽  
Ceramic Filter ◽  
Water Filter ◽  
Clean Drinking Water

Africa is one of the most water-scarce continents on earth and the lack of potable water is responsible for the death of approximately 4,900 children every day. An effective way of making sure that water is of good quality is by decontaminating it by means of a household ceramic water filter. The low-cost water filters suitable for the removal of suspended solids, pathogenic bacteria and other toxins from drinking water were developed using the traditional slip casting process. The locally produced filter has the advantage of low cost due to the usage of locally available raw materials, labour and expertise. Furthermore, the project provides opportunities for local financing and innovation. The product was tested using water contaminated with high concentrations of selected bacterial cultures as well as with water from local polluted streams. The ceramic filter was found to be highly effective in removing the bacteria and suspended solids from the contaminated water. With correct cleaning and basic maintenance, this filter can effectively provide clean drinking water for rural families affected by polluted surface water sources. This could provide a low-cost solution for the more than 250 million people without access to clean drinking water in Africa.

scholarly journals Photocatalytic Enhancement for Solar Disinfection of Water: A Review

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Anthony Byrne ◽  
Pilar A. Fernandez-Ibañez ◽  
Patrick S. M. Dunlop ◽  
Dheaya M. A. Alrousan ◽  
Jeremy W. J. Hamilton
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Waterborne Diseases ◽  
Safe Drinking Water ◽  
Developing Regions ◽  
Water Supplies ◽  
Semiconductor Photocatalysis ◽  
Solar Disinfection ◽  
Clean Drinking Water

It is estimated that 884 million people lack access to improved water supplies. Many more are forced to rely on supplies that are microbiologically unsafe, resulting in a higher risk of waterborne diseases, including typhoid, hepatitis, polio, and cholera. Due to poor sanitation and lack of clean drinking water, there are around 4 billion cases of diarrhea each year resulting in 2.2 million deaths, most of these are children under five. While conventional interventions to improve water supplies are effective, there is increasing interest in household-based interventions to produce safe drinking water at an affordable cost for developing regions. Solar disinfection (SODIS) is a simple and low cost technique used to disinfect drinking water, where water is placed in transparent containers and exposed to sunlight for 6 hours. There are a number of parameters which affect the efficacy of SODIS, including the solar irradiance, the quality of the water, and the nature of the contamination. One approach to SODIS enhancement is the use of semiconductor photocatalysis to produce highly reactive species that can destroy organic pollutants and inactivate water pathogens. This paper presents a critical review concerning semiconductor photocatalysis as a potential enhancement technology for solar disinfection of water.

scholarly journals Evaluation of a Low-Cost Ceramic Filter for Sustainable Reuse of Urban Stormwater in Arid Environments

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 460
Author(s):  
Md. Shafiquzzaman ◽  
Husnain Haider ◽  
Yousry Mahmoud Ghazaw ◽  
Fawaz Alharbi ◽  
Saleem S. AlSaleem ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Suspended Solids ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Ceramic Filter ◽  
Continuous Mode ◽  
Urban Stormwater ◽  
Removal Efficiencies ◽  
Alum Coagulation ◽  
Ceramic Filtration

Sustainable reuse of urban stormwater is inevitable in the fight against water crises in arid regions. This research aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a low-cost ceramic filtration process for reuse applications of urban stormwater. Stormwater was collected from a storage pond located in Buraydah (Qassim, Saudi Arabia) for laboratory experiments. The filtration tests were performed in a continuous mode with constant pressure using a low-cost ceramic filter made of clay soil and rice bran. The removal rates of the contaminants (heavy metals) as well as the turbidity, suspended solids, and nutrients of the stormwater were assessed. High removal efficiencies for turbidity (97.4%), suspended solids (97.0%), BOD5 (78.4%), and COD (76.1%) were achieved while low removals were achieved for the nutrients: 19.7% for total nitrogen, 25.3% for nitrate, and 8.6% for phosphate. Removal efficiencies ranged between 36.2% and 99.9% for the heavy metals, i.e., iron, manganese, lead, zinc, nickel, copper, cadmium, selenium, and barium. Contaminant removal rates observed for the ceramic filter were also compared with the alum coagulation process operated in a continuous mode at an optimum alum dose of 50 mg/L. Similar removal behaviors for removal of turbidity, suspended solids, organics, nutrients, and heavy metals suggested that both ceramic filtration and alum coagulation can be effectively used for stormwater treatment. Effluent qualities of both the ceramic filter and alum coagulation met the standards, for recycling/reuse of wastewater, set by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and World Health Organization for unrestricted irrigation and toilet flushing. The study results revealed that ceramic filtration is a low-cost, energy efficient, and easy to maintain technology which can be complimentary to best management practices for stormwater.

scholarly journals Treatment of Alkaline Water using Reverse Osmosis System with the Help of Renewable Solar Energy

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (VI) ◽  
pp. 2465-2470
Author(s):  
S. Dhinakaran
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Purification ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Management Plan ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Water Treatment Process ◽  
Water Purification System ◽  
Purification System ◽  
Contaminated Drinking Water ◽  
Clean Drinking Water

The aim of this project is to develop a low-cost water purification system that provides clean drinking water. The project has a broad reach since drinking water pollution is a big global problem. This device would provide a solution to contaminated drinking water. Electric current is used to power the purifier during the water treatment process, reducing fluoride, chloride, and increasing the pH content of salty water, resulting in potable drinking water. To achieve this aim, a project management plan has been devised that divides the tasks amongst the community. The ultimate goal of designing this project is to provide clean drinking water at a low cost. The aim of this project is to develop and build a small-scale water purification system that needs little maintenance and is inexpensive. Initially, solar power would be used to power the purification system and to transition the system to renewable energy.

Removal of selected microorganisms using silver-impregnated and coated, low-cost, micro-porous, ceramic water filters

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Simonis ◽  
Muzi Ndwandwe ◽  
Albert Basson ◽  
Tlou Selepe
Keyword(s):  
Pathogenic Bacteria ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Porous Ceramic ◽  
Nano Particles ◽  
Ceramic Filter ◽  
Poor People ◽  
Ceramic Surface ◽  
Household Water Treatment ◽  
Poor Countries ◽  
Ceramic Water Filters

There is great need to purify the contaminated water which the poor people in Africa have access to, and make it safe for drinking in a way that is affordable and effective. A particular challenge is the removal of pathogenic bacteria and viruses, which traditionally are eliminated by expensive nano-filtration or reverse osmosis. An added requirement is satisfying the recent recommendation of the WHO for household water-treatment systems to eliminate 99.99% of microbial contamination, which is proving exceptionally difficult to achieve in poor countries at a cost they can afford. We report on the successful testing of a low-cost, locally produced ceramic filter that has the potential to meet the WHO criterion at a cost of US$10 per year. In one version the filter consisted of a silver-impregnated, highly porous ceramic; in another modification silver nano particles were incorporated on the ceramic surface. The silver-impregnated filter was tested on water samples contaminated with selected Gram negative bacteria: Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, for its oligodynamic effect and for its effective reduction of bacteriophages. The ceramic filters reduced the viral count by 94–99% and we believe that, with further development, our prototype is easily capable of achieving the WHO criterion.

scholarly journals Microbiological effectiveness of locally produced ceramic filters for drinking water treatment in Cambodia

2009 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joe Brown ◽  
Mark D. Sobsey
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Treatment ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Drinking Water Treatment ◽  
Water Sources ◽  
Ceramic Filter ◽  
Ceramic Filters ◽  
Household Level ◽  
Drinking Water Sources ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations

Low-cost options for the treatment of drinking water at the household level are being explored by the Cambodian government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working in Cambodia, where many lack access to improved drinking water sources and diarrhoeal diseases are the most prevalent cause of death in children under 5 years of age. The ceramic water purifier (CWP), a locally produced, low-cost ceramic filter, is now being implemented by several NGOs, and an estimated 100,000 + households in the country now use them for drinking water treatment. Two candidate filters were tested for the reduction of bacterial and viral surrogates for waterborne pathogens using representative Cambodian drinking water sources (rainwater and surface water) spiked with Escherichia coli and bacteriophage MS2. Results indicate that filters were capable of reducing key microbes in the laboratory with mean reductions of E. coli of approximately 99% and mean reduction of bacteriophages of 90–99% over >600 litres throughput. Increased effectiveness was not observed in filters with an AgNO3 amendment. At under US$10 per filter, locally produced ceramic filters may be a promising option for drinking water treatment and safe storage at the household level.

scholarly journals Development of a low cost household bone-char defluoridation filter

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 1921-1927
Author(s):  
Boris Merlain Djousse Kanouo ◽  
Mathias Fru Fonteh ◽  
Steve Pindjou Ngambo
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Appropriate Technology ◽  
Bone Char ◽  
Water Filter ◽  
Point Of Use ◽  
Dental And Skeletal Fluorosis ◽  
Northern Cameroon ◽  
Low Income Families

Regular intake of drinking water containing fluoride above permissible levels (>1.5 mgl-1) is responsible for dental and skeletal fluorosis. The objective of this study was to develop a low cost and efficient water defluoridation filter using local materials. The filter frame was made from Polyvinyl chloride pipe of 125 mm diameter and 1 m height, with a useful filtration volume of 9.55 l. The filtration layer consisted of a sequence of three strata: gravel, bone-char and sand, giving a total weight of 15 kg. Based on the concentration of fluoride in drinking water in parts of northern Cameroon, three different fluoride ion concentrations (10 mgl-1, 20 mgl-1 and 30 mgl-1) were prepared in the laboratory using distilled water and allowed to flow through the filter at the rate of 3.33 lh-1. High fluoride uptake capacity was observed (94.8% to 99.1%), depicting the suitability of the filter in defluoridation. The constructed filter costed about 17 US$. Based on these results, the filter can be recommended as an appropriate technology to mitigate fluoride health hazards problems in low income families. Although the estimated replacement frequency of biochar was three months, further research is required to optimize the point of use system performances.Keywords: Bone-char, water filter, fluoride.

Evaluation of the Potential of Using Quartzite Residue in Mass for the Production of Sanitary Ware

2016 ◽  
Vol 869 ◽  
pp. 181-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula Simone Soares de Medeiros ◽  
L.N.L. Santana ◽  
V.J. Silva ◽  
Gelmires Araújo Neves ◽  
Hélio Lucena Lira
Keyword(s):  
Raw Materials ◽  
Slip Casting ◽  
Physical And Mechanical Properties ◽  
Casting Process ◽  
Particle Size Analysis ◽  
Sanitary Ware ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Firing Process ◽  
Size Analysis ◽  
Clay Kaolin

Currently there is a great concern on the part of the industries with the disposal of waste generated in the production process. The quartzite processing industry generates significant amount of residue, consisting primarily of quartz. The aim of this work is to evaluate the incorporation of quartzite residue, replacing partially the quartz and feldspar, in ceramic mass used in the production of sanitary ware. The raw materials were characterized by chemical and particle size analysis. Compositions were formulated by varying the amount of residue and comparing with an industrial mass, consisted of clay, kaolin, feldspar and quartz. The slip casting process was used in the preparation of the specimens. The results showed that the residue can be considered as an alternative raw material for use in sanitary ware industry, since the ceramic slip presented appropriate rheological properties and after firing process the specimens presented physical and mechanical properties according to the specifications.

Characterization and performance of rice husk as additive in green ceramic water filter fabricated by slip-casting

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 553-562
Author(s):  
Siti Salwa Alias ◽  
Zawati Harun ◽  
Salina Abu Mansor
Keyword(s):  
Low Cost ◽  
Slip Casting ◽  
Weight Ratio ◽  
Textile Dye ◽  
Dye Wastewater ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Casting Technique ◽  
Water Filter ◽  
Waste Sludge ◽  
By Products

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate the using of rice husk (RH) which is a green material derived from agricultural waste with the ability to absorb heavy metal. It has been used in wastewater treatment. In this research, a kaolin-based green ceramic water filter (CWF) incorporated with two different additives (RH and zeolite-based RH ash [RHA]) was successfully fabricated. Design/methodology/approach The weight ratio of kaolin:additive was varied (90:10, 80:20 and 70:30) and fabricated via the slip-casting technique. The green CWFs were dried (60°C for 1 h), followed by sintering (1,200°C). Findings The green CWF of kaolin:RH with a weight ratio of 70:30 showed the best properties and satisfactory performance with a porous cross-section microstructure, highest porous area (4.58 µm2), good structure, lowest shrinkage (8.00%), highest porosity (45.10%), lowest density (1.79 g cm−3), highest water absorption (55.50%) and hardness (241.40 Hv). This green CWF has also achieved good permeability (42.00 L m−2h−1) and removal of the textile dye (27.88%). The satisfactory characterization and good textile dye removal performance (75.47%) were also achieved from green CWF with kaolin:zeolite at a weight ratio of 80:20. Research limitations/implications This research is focused on green CWF and zeolite at a certain amount with the specific characterization analysis methods. Practical implications The use of low-cost waste materials to treat dye wastewater from agricultural by-products/wastes sources in treating the dye will enhance the using of green material. Social implications Avoiding the waste sludge that can pollute the environment can create a health issue. The use of low-cost waste materials to treat dye wastewater from agricultural by-products/wastes sources in treating the dye can avoid the waste sludge that can pollute the environment and create serious health issue. Originality/value All the kaolin-based green CWFs incorporated with two different additives (RH and zeolite-based RHA) fabricated using a simple slip-casting technique have shown the potential to be used as a filter in wastewater treatment applications.

scholarly journals Are Inexpensive Solutions Affordable?

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-30
Author(s):  
Matthew Krystal
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Data Driven ◽  
Purchase Price ◽  
Wood Stove ◽  
Water Filter ◽  
Sustainable Technologies ◽  
Clean Drinking Water ◽  
Water Filters

This article explores the efforts of an indigenous non-governmental organisation (NGO) to solve two related problems in San Miguel Totonicapán: the lack of clean drinking water and deforestation. Drawing on participant observation conducted during field stays over 10 years and survey data collected over 18 months, the article examines the affordability of bio-sand drinking water filters and high-efficiency wood cooking stoves. It considers whether savings over typical current practices for the procurement of drinking water and cooking fuel off set the purchase price of new sustainable technologies. The article also outlines data-driven recommendations offered to the NGO. While there are significant obstacles to market distribution, the acquisition of a bio-sand water filter or an improved wood stove makes good economic sense for households that presently purchase drinking water or firewood.

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