Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation is a powerful technology that has been successfully deployed in several diverse industries such as life sciences, microelectronics, food & beverage, aquaculture, recreational water, etc. for several decades. While the most common application of UV in water treatment is disinfection, it’s powerful energy can also be harnessed for other applications such as chlorine and chloramine destruction, TOC (Total Oxidizable Carbon)
Chlorine/Chloramine Destruction
UV radiation can effectively eliminate residual chlorine/chloramine present in water. Research studies in this area were triggered by the recognition of the undesirable, negative effects of conventional dechlorination technologies such as activated carbon filtration and sodium metabisulfite injection.
Both of these processes have significant inherent drawbacks. Carbon beds are excellent breeding grounds for bacteria to thrive and proliferate. Chemical addition involves the introduction of an added substance and is therefore undesirable. As an alternative to use of chemicals and activated carbon beds, UV technology can be utilized to destroy chlorine/chloramine, thereby eliminating the need for chemical handling, bacteria problems, etc.
Research studies sponsored by Aquafine have demonstrated conclusively that free chlorine residuals or chloramine residuals upto 2.0 ppm can be successfully destroyed by the application of UV light. With decades of experience in the microelectronics, ife sciences and food & beverage industries, Aquafine has a well-rounded understanding of the design and construction of water systems for these applications, as well as in unique applications such as Aquaculture, cooling towers, and power generation systems.
Our expertise has expanded as the food and beverage industries have grown in their preference for UV over traditional methods. With UV there is no change in taste, no chemical handling or chemical costs, no removal of chlorine from the water stream or generation of byproducts.
Ultraviolet Sterilization
All living organisms contain DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid). DNA provides the mechanism for all functions needed to sustain life. Aquafine disinfection systems emit UV light that penetrates the outer cell membrane of microorganisms, passes through the cell body, reaches the DNA and alters the genetic material. The microorganism is thereby destroyed in a non-chemical manner and is unable to reproduce.
When organisms absorb UV light in the range of 200-300nm, DNA and RNA molecules absorb the UV. The DNA molecule contains all the genetic information needed for replication. UV absorption causes disruption of the nucleic material of the double helix strands. This prevents replication, which is lethal to the cell. The absorption of UV radiation at 254nm causes the formation of dimers along the DNA strands. Dimers are A_A (adenine – adenine), GG (guanine -guanine), T-T (thymine-thymine) compounds as opposed to the normal formation of A-T-G-C- etc.
If the dosage is not optimized, then complete inhibition of replication WILL NOT occur. On the other hand, an insufficient UV dosage may cause limited damage to the DNA, which then can, under favorable conditions, repair using repair enzymes. That’s why it is extremely critical to impart the OPTIMUM UV dosage to prevent repair. While bacteria have built-in repair enzymes, viruses do not. Therefore, they have to rely on the enzymes of the host cell.