Did you know that you used about 134 bottles of water today? Thanks to the water purification process, you can enjoy a seemingly endless supply of clean water for your everyday needs.
However, consumption is not limited to drinking water. We also consume clean water when we cook or wash anything from our cars, clothes, and even our pets.
But just how much thought goes into where we get our water? If water came from the same muddy rivers that we see, how does it become safe to use? And more importantly, how does dirty water become safe to drink?
What is Water Purification
The term water purification is self-explanatory, but it does beg the questions of what exactly was in our water that counts as impure and how water purification works.
In simple terms, water purification involves removing unwanted materials and contaminants from raw water. Contaminants are particles like dirt and sand that can pollute the water and give it a cloudy appearance.
Diarrhoea, Dysentery, and Other Deadly Diseases
Besides the fact that purified water looks, smells, and tastes better, water purification also prevents the transmission of diseases.
Raw water may contain undesirable microorganisms such as parasites, algae, fungi, bacteria, minerals and even chemicals.
When consumed, bacteria like Salmonella and Escherichia coli (E. coli) can wreak havoc in our bodily systems and may ultimately lead to death.
These bacteria cause diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera, and dysentery. Unfortunately, many impoverished communities do not have access to clean water. Hence, they often fall victims to water-borne diseases.
WHO has estimated that 502,000 people die every year from diarrhoea alone due to the consumption of contaminated drinking water.
Water Purification Systems to Meet Industrial Needs
Another goal of water purification systems is also to meet the needs of industries that require the use of potable water.
The medical, chemical, pharmacological, and industrial sectors have many uses for clean water. For instance, dentists require water for patients to rinse after procedures.
Additionally, factories use large amounts of water for processing, washing, and cooling products. Without clean water, it is difficult for any industry to carry out its day-to-day activities.
Where Our Water Comes From
The glass of water in your hands might be mundane in every way, but the journey it embarked on to arrive in your home is more complex than you might think.
All water comes from two sources: surface water and groundwater. Surface water is found in lakes, rivers, and reservoirs, while groundwater comes from deep under the Earth’s surface.
Since Malaysia has over 150 river systems, 98% of the water we get in the country is considered surface water. Sungai Langat, Sungai Selangor and Sungai Kinta are among the main sources of drinking water in Malaysia.
How Water Purification Works with Intelligent Aqua
The Malaysian Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MOSTI) saw the development of a cutting-edge innovative water treatment system called Intelligent Aqua (IA).
IA uses a 5X technique that complies with the internationally accepted methodology of activated carbon contactor design to purify water. This technique involves five processes: Colour and Solid Removal, Impurities Adsorption and Absorption, Neutralisation, Filtration, and Purification.
Efficient and cost-effective, this process converts sewerage or wastewater into high-quality water that more than holds up to WHO’s standards for purified water.
IA’s Innovative Concept
A closer look into IA’s water purification technology will show that it adopts an innovative concept involving adsorption techniques.
- Adsorption
- Much like a magnet, molecules from a gas, liquid, or dissolved solid (the contaminants) become adhesive to a particular surface. This process creates a thin film of contaminants on the outer surface of the adsorbent (the substance that adsorbs another).
- This concept is the best technology for removing surface water contaminants like heavy metals, chloramines, toxins and oils, disinfection by-products (DPS), turbidity, and more.
How IA Removes Impurities with Adsorption
Impurities in water may refer to more than disease-causing bacteria. Agricultural runoffs can introduce pesticides and viruses to water, while poultry farms may pollute it with faeces.
Furthermore, water treatment plants that use disinfection methods like Chloramination and Ozonation produce lingering by-products that potentially cause cancer.
All of these contaminants contribute to the immense toxicity of our water. This truth is the painful reality of our water sources that humans have to face.
A Modern Use for An Ancient Method
However, purifying water from these contaminants is no challenge to Intelligent Aqua’s water purification systems. As part of IA’s innovative concept, the adsorption process uses activated carbon as adsorbents.
First used by the ancient Egyptians to absorb unpleasant odours in 3750 B.C., activated carbon is a powerful detoxifier. It is capable of removing organic and chemical contaminants to not only purify water but also make it more palatable to the tastebuds.
Nowadays, activated carbon has found many uses in modern society. These include air purification, gold purification, sewage treatment, teeth whitening, metal extraction, water purification, and more.
Greener and Cleaner
IA takes it to the next level by using the greener choice that produces cleaner water- coconut shell-based activated carbon. This renewable source of activated carbon is an ideal choice because of its pure natural structure and low ash content.
Apart from being sturdy, this form of carbon also has predominant pores in the micropore range. Their size matches contaminant molecules in drinking water, effectively trapping them through adsorption.
How Activated Carbon Works
Also known as activated charcoal, this processed carbon has an extremely high number of small, low-volume pores that increase the surface area available for contaminants to attach to them.
To be specific, one gram of activated carbon has a surface area of 3,000m2 as determined by gas adsorption. This makes the carbon highly porous and will effectively ensure that the water that reaches your taps is pristine and palatable.
The US Environmental Protection Agency considers adsorption by activated carbon to be the best technology for removing many contaminants in surface water.
How IA Water Purification System Removes Impurities with Adsorption Techniques
IA uses the adsorption and absorption techniques where undesirable contaminants adsorb effectively with activated carbon like the concept of magnetism. Organic compounds bond or stick to the surface of a carbon filter because water and contaminants are both polar compounds that attract one another.
One example of this process is water purification which aims to reduce iron and manganese content in water. This is an effective method to remove even toxic metals like radium, uranium, and chromium from water.
Activated carbon is used widely in the food and beverage industry, pharmaceutical technology, ground and potable water treatment, industrial water treatment, power, and many other industries.
Intelligent Aqua stands out as an innovative pure water solution provider for producing high-quality water that consistently goes beyond clean water standards.
Its zero-chemicals policy and bio-green water treatment methods also ensure that the water is sustainable and safe for both commercial and domestic use.
Feel free to contact us if you have any queries about our products and services.
