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DRINKING WATER DISINFECTION USING A UV/PHOTOCATALYST
Description:
Worldwide, lack of safe drinking water takes an inestimable toll on human health. The objective of this project is to develop a small-scale sustainable water disinfection technology requiring a minimum of treatment time. The technology to be developed will be simple, sustainable and appropriate for implementation in the Kamuli district of Uganda. Solar UV has been used in developing countries for disinfection drinking water. However, the time needed is usually in the order of 5-6 hours. Solar UV radiation and a titanium dioxide photocatalyst can be utilized to create an effective system to reduce the time needed to disinfect water. However, several design challenges must be considered before the technology can be applied. Some of the challenges for the technology to be appropriate include use of readily-available materials, dosage of photocatalyst needed and the method of deployment of the photocatalyst. A small scale system will be tested. Communication with students and professionals at the partner institutions in Uganda will ensure consideration of factors such as sustainability and appropriateness. Project will be performed by students in a multidisciplinary sustainable engineering course in conjunction with students from the group Engineers for a Sustainable World. It is expected that students will learn about sustainability and the design will be optimized through testing. At the end of the project period, the design and a prototype will be ready for field implementation.