A UVC based advanced photooxidation reactor design for remote households and communities not connected to a municipal drinking water system

A household scale UVC/TiO2 based advanced oxidation process (AOP) reactor was developed for drinking water treatment. A 3D UVC absorption model to predict light energy absorbed by the photocatalyst coatings was developed and agreed with direct light irradiance measurements. The tubular reactor was used with and without titanium dioxide (TiO2) coated plates lining inside and was found to simultaneously inactivate a high initial concentration of Escherichia coli and degrade uracil, which was used as a synthetic water pollutant. The reactor, lined with replaceable TiO2 coated plates, degraded uracil by 34.2% and natural organic matter in raw lake water by 33.2% within 24 minutes. An additional low dose of hydrogen peroxide also demonstrated an advantage to a reactor without TiO2 coated plates. The electrical energy per order value was evaluated for this UVC/TiO2 reactor to be 8.13 kWh/m(3), which is in the competitive range for a photocatalytic reactor. The UV/photocatalyst based AOP water treatment reactor design shows practical application potential for remote households and communities that do not have access to municipal water treatment.

Automated summary

A household scale UVC/TiO2 based advanced oxidation process (AOP) reactor was developed for drinking water treatment, with a 3D UVC absorption model to predict light energy absorbed by the photocatalyst coatings. The tubular reactor demonstrated efficient degradation of pollutants and disinfection, potentially offering practical application for remote households and communities lacking access to municipal water treatment facilities.