What is UV disinfection?

UV disinfection is a method of using ultraviolet radiation to kill microorganisms that can live in water, thus safe to drink. Mercury arc lamps are often used to generate water in this way to generate ultraviolet light. The light penetrates into the cell walls of bacteria, parasites, viruses and other living contaminants and changes their DNA. Depending on the intensity of the radiation and the length of the exposure, it will either kill them or prevent them from reproducing. The same technique can be used to disinfect waste water. Quartz is one of the few solids that can penetrate ultraviolet radiation, allowing the surrounding water to be exposed to cleaning rays. The disadvantage of this system is that the substances dissolved in water tend to collect on the exposed walls of the quartz tube, which blocks the radiation before leakage into the water. Teflon® is an excellent hire of ultraviolet radiation, so as these tubesAmi flows water, exposed to light from all sides and disinfected. These Teflon® Tube systems are often surrounded by an aluminum sheath that reflects any UV light that is not absorbed back into the water. Unlike quartz, Teflon® usually does not collect dirt that can block radiation.

Both methods are more convenient than hydrogen peroxide or chlorine disinfection because they do not use any chemicals. This means that no chemical residues are left in the water cleaned and the environment is not exposed to harmful chemicals. Due to chemicals, however, these traditional methods of water disinfection offer certain residual disinfectants, which UV disinfection does not.

UV disinfection is not so effective on cloudy water, as bacteria and other contaminants may be hidden in larger particles and prevent radiation exposure. This type of disinfection is also dependent on a properly functioning device.The water must flow continuously to prevent the system from overheating, which could shift the radiation frequency to the external antimicrobial range. Similarly, the lamps must be regularly exchanged to ensure that they emit the right amount of radiation.

UV disinfection costs are comparable to chlorine disinfection costs. As the UV lamp technology and disinfectants improve, the costs are likely to fall further and stimulate more people to use ultraviolet water cleaners. This may, in turn, increase the competition between manufacturers and distributors of these systems, maintain a low price and make UV disinfection one of the highest methods of water disinfection.