With an all-time high demand for cost-efficient and sustainable solutions to provide clean water, UV disinfection systems have taken on an increasingly important role. It is especially the global sustainability focus that has made choosing the right solution for water disinfection challenges ever more important. The growing environmental awareness combined with stricter regulations for effluent discharge standards continues to fill the agenda in this regard.
Since UV technology was discovered well over 100 years ago, it has undergone huge technological improvements, which today has made it impossible to ignore when it comes to water treatment processes.
UV systems are a globally accepted solution for water disinfection due to being a chemical-free sustainable solution, combined with being able of inactivating bacteria, viruses, and protozoa, which makes the technology vital for the future of water disinfection.
Let’s take a deeper look at how UV systems work.
Watch the video below for a full overview of the UV system disinfection process – or continue reading below.
Disinfecting water with UV systems is a very straightforward, yet extremely efficient method to ensure disinfected water.
As seen on the image above, the water flows through the piping system and through the UV chamber. In this chamber, the water is exposed to ultraviolet light, that is emitted from the UV lamps. The UV light from the lamps has a specific wavelength in the UV-C spectrum (around 254nm), that enables microorganism inactivation if exposed with the right intensity.
In technical terms, when the water comes into contact with UV light, the chemical bonds are broken down, which changes the DNA structure. It is this change in the DNA structure that disables the pathogens’ ability to perform vital cellular functions, including reproducing or causing infection.
As the video above shows, bacteria such as E. coli reproduce extremely rapidly. This is where the UV lamps come into action to damage the DNA or RNA of the microorganisms, which disrupts their ability to function and replicate.
Dependent on the efficiency of the lamps and the microorganism to be inactivated – the contaminated water that has gone into the system will come out disinfected. This is why it is essential to make sure that the right UV system is selected for the specific water to be treated. In other words – If the UV system is too small for the task, it will not be able to inactivate the microorganisms, as the rays emitted from the lamps will not be powerful enough. All factors for ensuring proper water treatment conditions for the specific challenge are naturally assessed and considered when a UV system from ULTRAAQUA is inquired.
As a notable advantage, the disinfected water coming out of the reactor will have no altering of taste, odor, or color of the water. This means that both the physical and chemical properties of the water remain identical both before and after the treatment.
While there are averages for the different water treatment applications such as drinking water facilities, it is always considered to be best practice to test and measure the water before selecting the UV system to make sure the targeted microorganisms are inactivated.
Even though water can visually appear to be clean, there is no guarantee that it does not contain significant levels of harmful bacteria, viruses, and parasites. UV disinfection has a vital role in many water treatment processes worldwide to solve this biosecurity issue. While UV disinfection can not always stand alone in water treatment processes, there are several benefits of including the technology.
This includes benefits such as:
It is especially a beneficial alternative to chlorine disinfection, which can potentially result in health complications such as respiratory diseases, as well as being incapable of inactivating Cryptosporidium and Giardia.
Understanding the components included in a common UV disinfection system can be beneficial in regard to getting a full understanding of how UV systems work. Each of these parts has an important role to carry out in the disinfection process.
The UV lamps are the heart of the UV system, which emits UV-C ultraviolet light to inactivate the microorganisms. With enough UV light exposure, microorganism inactivation will be achieved. Dependent on the water treatment challenge, either low-pressure or medium-pressure lamps can be used.
The quartz sleeves allow the UV lamps to do their job by protecting the lamp from water. To prevent fouling over time, quartz sleeve wiping can be integrated to consistently keep the quartz sleeves clean, allowing the UV lamps to stay close to full performance.
The reactor is where the UV disinfection process takes place. As the water flows through the chamber, the UV lamps are doing their job to inactivate the microorganisms. Dependent on the water treatment challenge, the reactor material can consist of either stainless steel (SS), polypropylene (PP), or high-density polyethylene (PEHD).
The ballasts ensure that the system is provided with the accurate electrical input it needs to maintain a stable operation.
The control cabinet is what controls the disinfection behind the scenes, by offering the operator control over the state of the system. Besides advanced functions, it is usually capable of sending out alerts if the lamps are not working correctly and providing info about the disinfection performance.
All these main components are a necessity for any operational UV disinfection system. The amount of them will however vary dependent on the disinfection challenge, where specific cases might require more lamps than others. For one closed vessel reactor, the UV systems from ULTRAAQUA can range from 1 lamp up to 56 UV lamps per unit.
If you are interested in learning more about our UV disinfection systems, you are always welcome to reach out to our sales engineers at sales@ultraaqua.com – or use the contact formula below.
UV sanitization is useful in almost any application where microbial-free, safe and pure water is required; and where there is a chance of the water being contaminated before it reaches the final point of use.
UV Disinfection System is an extremely effective way to combat microbial contamination in water. However, microbes have to be exposed to UV-C light in the proper amount in order to effectively disinfect the water. UV Disinfection Systems are used in many different applications ranging from the purification of drinking water in individual homes to disinfecting the water supply of entire townships to industrial wastewater treatment . UV treatment for water is recognized as a safer and more cost-effective way to disinfect water for industrial applications
In UV water disinfection technology, Ultraviolet light of wavelength 253.7 nanometers is used for the disinfection of bacteria, viruses, molds, algae, and other microorganisms, which multiply and grow. Ultraviolet disinfection technology destroys the DNA of microorganisms which leaves them dead and unable to grow further. UV disinfection technology can be used for drinking water disinfection, process water disinfection, wastewater disinfection, and surface disinfection. Other than disinfection applications, UV water filtration system can also be used for TOC removal and Ozone destruction. Plus, there is a UV sterilizer for hospitals, factories, and offices.
In the UV water disinfection technology, the UV light disinfects by penetrating microorganisms and destroying their DNA. DNA plays an important role in organisms’ functions and reproduction hence destroying the DNA prevents the organism from being active and multiplying. This UV energy (wavelength of 240-280 nm) is also naturally found in sunlight in very small quantities. The same energy is produced at stronger intensities with the help of high mercury discharge lamps, commonly known as UV lamps.
No bacteria, viruses, molds, or spores can survive when exposed to the correct dose of UV light. Therefore UV is considered as the best solution for water sterilization, and for room sterilization, there is the UV mobile sterilizer machine that can be used.
An ultraviolet disinfection system is not simply a lamp inside a pipe. The UV Reactor must be designed to ensure that all microbes receive sufficient exposure to the UV disinfection light (dose). Based on the hydraulic properties of water; the reactor needs to be optimized to guide the flow in a manner so as to maximize residence time and boost turbulence. Well designed Industrial UV water disinfection systems are producing consistently exceptional results in the industrial applications
Natural – UV water treatment system is nature’s way of purification.
Environmentally Friendly – No Toxic by-products are formed during the UV disinfection process
Effective – All known microorganisms are susceptible to UV light
Economical – Lowest operating cost among disinfection systems
Safe and Chemical-Free – No addition of chemicals hence no danger of overdosing
Fast – It is In-contact purification therefore Instant
Easy to Manage – Well-designed systems like the Alfaa UV systems come with many advanced features like CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics), high-efficiency electronic ballasts, and extremely precise UV intensity monitors which make them highly effective and hence easy to manage.
There can be some cases where the water is not adequately pre-treated and turbidity levels are low. In such cases, routine inspection and cleaning can be carried out every 6 months. In the case of high turbidity and hardness, the cleaning frequency might need to be increased. Finally, the UV lamp has a limited life and must be replaced once it is exhausted. In the unlikely event of premature failure of the lamp, the monitoring circuit will provide the signal to advise replacement.
Ultra Violet Chlorination Ozonation Capital Cost Low Lowest High Operating Cost Lowest Low High Ease of Installation Excellent Good Complex Ease of Maintenance Excellent Good Poor Contact Time Required <10 seconds 20-30 minutes 10-20 minutes
As a leader in UV technology, Alfaa is at work disinfecting and purifying every kind of water, from drinking water, to process and wastewater.
Alfaa’s UV water disinfection technology is Green & eco-friendly. UV uses no chemicals and forms no by-products. Compare this to chlorine which produces dangerous carcinogens such as trihalomethanes which further pollute our environment, and endanger our health. By adopting Alfaa’s UV water disinfection technology, you take a step forward in becoming a “Green Citizen”.
Blog By:- Alfaa UV is the market leader for UV disinfection systems in India with thousands of installations for various industries and applications.