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Water Purification Types

Water is essential to human survival, thus water purification is an important endeavor. There are a few types of water purificationsystems, however, the degree to which they are effective varies. Some need to be used in conjunction with other water purification processes to harness their ability as a filtration system.

  1. Reverse Osmosis

    • Reverse Osmosis is the process of water purification used by most bottling plants. It is 90 to 99 percent effective and is one of the most economical methods of purification, according to Free Drinking Water. This purification method uses a membrane/barrier and applies hydraulic pressure to filter the water and remove all the biological, bacterial and organic particles living in the unpurified water. According to Free Drinking Water, the treatment of water by reverse osmosis is so effective that it can even filter out impurities like strontium and radioactive plutonium in drinking water. This type of water purification requires minimal maintenance of the system, but the process is slow, which limits the rate of purification.

    Distillation

    • Distallation is the most traditional way of water purifcation. According to freedrinkingwater.com the way it works is water is boiled and condenses, where it is cooled and then the vapour is collected in a container and stored. The process is effective in remove most hazards from the water, however some contaminants are able to condense with the water and end up in the condensed water container, such as herbicides and pesticides. Another problem with this process is that the process of boiling the water uses a large amount of water and energy and is not every cost effective. Most of the water here is for industrial uses as the water has very little taste because of the low oxygen content.

    Carbon absorbtion

    • Carbon absorption removes bad tastes, odours and also adequately purifies the water. Carbon absorption is the most widely used form of filtration in homes and although is removes most impurities including gases and chemicals, it often does not filter out heavy metals, states freedrinkingwater.com. The two carbon purification types that exist are solid block carbon and granular activated carbon systems, with both often being used on conjunction with the reverse osmosis filtration system. The way these systems work is that the porous carbon captures particles, while the surface of the carbon is sticky and impurities cling to the walls, states freedrinkingwater.com. Carbon purification systems also have a capacity to work well for long periods of time, making them cost effective.

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