scholarly journals ‘Hom’: a simple point of use water treatment device

2010 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 741-750
Author(s):  
Moses J. Omedi ◽  
Emmanuel C. Kipkorir

This study sought to explore a locally assembled ‘Hom’ point of use water treatment device by assessing aspects of its performance and possible effects of using it on compliant households and communities. The conceptual framework highlights poverty and environmental degradation as causes and consequences of one another, with ill-health caused by water-borne diseases reinforcing both to form a cycle. Whether or not the device would play a role in interrupting this cycle depends on its capabilities and acceptance, among other factors. Survey results indicated that the device is acceptable to 84% of respondents. Analysed data collected using questionnaires from 60 randomly sampled pilot device users revealed that it is useful to its users. Yield trials results led to the conclusion that one device unit could provide enough drinking water to satisfy the needs of a large representative household. Laboratory tests of water samples filtered with cartridges used for up to 10 years in the device found the water to be safe for drinking. It is concluded that the device is effective, environmentally friendly and useful to compliant households.

2021 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan Tintle ◽  
Kristin Van De Griend ◽  
Rachel Ulrich ◽  
Randall D. Wade ◽  
Tena M. Baar ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Lack of sustainable access to clean drinking water continues to be an issue of paramount global importance, leading to millions of preventable deaths annually. Best practices for providing sustainable access to clean drinking water, however, remain unclear. Widespread installation of low-cost, in-home, point of use water filtration systems is a promising strategy. Methods We conducted a prospective, randomized, controlled trial whereby 16 villages were selected and randomly assigned to one of four treatment arms based on the installation location of Sawyer® PointONE™ filters (filter in both home and school; filter in home only; filter in school only; control group). Water samples and self-reported information on diarrhea were collected at multiple times throughout the study. Results Self-reported household prevalence of diarrhea decreased from 25.6 to 9.76% from installation to follow-up (at least 7 days, and up to 200 days post-filter installation). These declines were also observed in diarrhea with economic or educational consequences (diarrhea which led to medical treatment and/or missing school or work) with baseline prevalence of 9.64% declining to 1.57%. Decreases in diarrhea prevalence were observed across age groups. There was no evidence of a loss of efficacy of filters up to 200 days post-filter installation. Installation of filters in schools was not associated with decreases in diarrhea prevalence in school-aged children or family members. Unfiltered water samples both at schools and homes contained potential waterborne bacterial pathogens, dissolved heavy metals and metals associated with particulates. All dissolved metals were detected at levels below World Health Organization action guidelines. Conclusions This controlled trial provides strong evidence of the effectiveness of point-of-use, hollow fiber membrane filters at reducing diarrhea from bacterial sources up to 200 days post-installation when installed in homes. No statistically significant reduction in diarrhea was found when filters were installed in schools. Further research is needed in order to explore filter efficacy and utilization after 200 days post-installation. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03972618. Registered 3 June 2019—retrospectively registered.


Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 1094
Author(s):  
Emily S. Bailey ◽  
Nikki Beetsch ◽  
Douglas A. Wait ◽  
Hemali H. Oza ◽  
Nirmala Ronnie ◽  
...  

It is estimated that 780 million people do not have access to improved drinking water sources and approximately 2 billion people use fecally contaminated drinking water. Effective point-of-use water treatment systems (POU) can provide water with sufficiently reduced concentrations of pathogenic enteric microorganisms to not pose significant health risks to consumers. Household water treatment (HWT) systems utilize various technologies that physically remove and/or inactivate pathogens. A limited number of governmental and other institutional entities have developed testing protocols to evaluate the performance of POU water treatment systems. Such testing protocols are essential to documenting effective performance because inferior and ineffective POU treatment technologies are thought to be in widespread use. This critical review examines specific practices, procedures and specification of widely available POU system evaluation protocols. Testing protocols should provide standardized and detailed instructions yet be sufficiently flexible to deal with different treatment technologies, test microbe priorities and choices, testing facility capabilities and public health needs. Appropriate infectivity or culture assays should be used to quantify test enteric bacteria, viruses and protozoan parasites, or other appropriate surrogates or substitutes for them, although processes based on physical removal can be tested by methods that detect microbes as particles. Recommendations include further research of stock microbe production and handling methods to consistently yield test microbes in a realistic state of aggregation and, in the case of bacteria, appropriately physiologically stressed. Bacterial quantification methods should address the phenomenon of bacterial injury and repair in order to maximally recover those that are culturable and potentially infectious. It is only with harmonized national and international testing protocols and performance targets that independent and unbiased testing can be done to assure consumers that POU treatment technologies are able to produce water of high microbial quality and low health risk.


2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (15) ◽  
pp. 14460-14470 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Victoria Marta-Sanchez ◽  
Sergiane Souza Caldas ◽  
Antunielle Schneider ◽  
Sónia Maria Vaz Sanches Cardoso ◽  
Ednei Gilberto Primel

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 477-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jia Lv ◽  
Lan Zhang ◽  
Yongyan Chen ◽  
Bixiong Ye ◽  
Jiayi Han ◽  
...  

Abstract The occurrence of pharmaceuticals in the drinking water is a growing concern in China. In this study, we determined the concentration and distribution of 59 selected pharmaceuticals in raw, finished, and tap water samples from 79 drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) in 15 cities, encompassing seven large river basins in China, using solid-phase extraction pretreatment and ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry analysis. Forty-seven pharmaceuticals were detected in raw water samples, with detection rates of 1.27–96.20% and average concentrations of 0.09–128.87 ng/L. Forty-three pharmaceuticals were detected in finished water samples, with detection rates of 1.27–96.20% and average concentrations of 0.07–59.17 ng/L. Forty-two pharmaceuticals were detected in tap water samples, with detection rates of 1.27–94.94% and average concentrations of 0.07–58.43 ng/L. Purification methods implemented by DWTPs are capable of removing some pharmaceuticals from water treatment systems; however, low concentrations of pharmaceuticals were detected in drinking water, raising concerns about the possible human health implications of long-term exposure to low-dose pharmaceuticals. The detection and quantification of pharmaceuticals in municipal water samples presented in this study represent the most extensive analysis of commonly used pharmaceuticals and personal care products located in Chinese river basins.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin W. Lykins ◽  
Robert M. Clark ◽  
James A. Goodrich

2017 ◽  
Vol 319 ◽  
pp. 89-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Chawla ◽  
A. Zwijnenburg ◽  
A.J.B. Kemperman ◽  
K. Nijmeijer

1984 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 383-392 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.C. Sherlock ◽  
D. Ashby ◽  
H.T. Delves ◽  
G.I. Forbes ◽  
M.R. Moore ◽  
...  

1 The water supply in Ayr (Scotland, UK) was plumbosolvent and many dwellings in Ayr contained lead pipes. In 1981 treatment of the water supply to reduce its plumbosolvency was initiated. Measurements of water and blood lead concentrations were made before and subsequent to the treatment. Most of the measurements made before and after water treatment began were made on water samples from the same dwellings and blood samples from the same women. 2 Water treatment produced a sharp fall in water lead concentrations and a decrease in the median blood lead concentration from 21 to 13 μg/100 ml. 3 Two women had higher than expected blood lead concentrations, both these women had been removing old paint. 4 Women who had lead pipes removed from their dwellings all showed substantial decreases in their blood lead concentrations. 5 The curvilinearity of the relation between blood lead and water lead concentrations is confirmed. Even relatively low (<40 μg/l) water lead concentrations may make a substantial contribution to blood lead concentrations.


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