(224n) Mini Pulsed Electric Field Device for Drinking Water Disinfection

Ka Wo LAM¹, CHEN Hao^2,4, Pik Shuen Karen HUNG^1,2, Oi Wa LEE², Siu Ming KWAN², Joseph Kai Cho KWAN^1,3, King Lun YEUNG^1,2,*

¹Division of Environment, ²Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, ³Health, Safety and Environment Office, ⁴Nano Science and Technology Program, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, P.R. China.

Division: 09 Environmental Division

Subdivision: 09001

Poster Session

Abstract:

        Clean drinking water supply is considered to be one of the most important milestones of public health. However, the microbial contamination of building water supply system is very common. The World Health Organization reported that diarrheal diseases from unsafe water kill 1.5 million children and causes two billion cases of illness each year worldwide.

        Chlorination, ozonation, UV exposure and reverse osmosis are widely used in drinking water disinfection nowadays. Chlorination is also classified as the best drinking water disinfection technology. However, these technologies disinfect the drinking water accompanying with altering  water quality. The discovery of Legionella in the water from the taps of Hong Kong’s brand new government headquarters illustrates the gravity of the situation and its potential threat to public health.

        Pulsed electric field disinfection is an effective, environmentally benign and safe technology for point-of-use disinfection of tap water based on the poration of microbial cell wall under electric field. The designed device is compact and portable. Low input voltage is applied to the system and it is able to attain 99.9 percent bacteria reduction in running tap water. As a purely physical disinfection method, pulsed electric field disinfection doesn’t involve chemical addition, thus without altering the water quality. It is believed that this device is  not only beneficial to the people in modern cities, but key to control the spread of water-borne diseases in most of the developing countries.