Pulsed Light Technology

Pulsed light technology, a new method of ultraviolet disinfection, is an effective way of eradicating Cryptosporidium from Irish water systems, according to research

Cryptosporidium, a microscopic organism found in rivers, lakes, and occasionally tap water, is especially dangerous to young children and those with a weak immune system. It is also one of the leading causes of scour in young calves and is highly infectious.

The parasite has been linked to a number of gastrointestinal epidemics throughout the country and, most recently, was detected in the Westport Public Water Supply. A boil notice was issued last month while authorities traced the source of the outbreak.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s current remedial action list reports 36 water schemes, serving more than 200,000 people, have inadequate treatment for cryptosporidium.

Now, a new study funded by the EPA, and carried out in both Athlone Institute of Technology and the National University of Ireland Galway, revealed pulsed light technology as an effective method of disinfection.

It recommends this “next-generation approach” be considered as a viable way to rid the water supply of harmful parasites.

“We basically store up a huge intensity of voltage and release it in tiny short pulses. We can release 100 pulses a second and the huge bursts of light are 50,000 times as bright as the sun,” said Prof Neil Rowan from AIT, who has been working on the project for the last four years.

“This method rapidly kills cryptosporidium but it would also kill any E coli s in the water or MRSA, or the winter vomiting bug.

Source: Irish Examiner

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Taxonomy

• Water Treatment & Control
• Technology
• Ultraviolet