Removal of Cryptosporidium-Sized Polystyrene Microspheres from Swimming Pool Water with a Sand Filter with and without Added Perlite Filter Media
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 137, Issue 12
Abstract
Waterborne disease outbreaks in U.S. swimming pools have been increasing in recent years, and the majority of the outbreaks are caused by Cryptosporidium oocysts. This research project evaluates sand filtration for swimming pools without and with an amendment, perlite. The evaluation was formed on the basis of removing 5-μm polystyrene microspheres, as a surrogate for Cryptosporidium oocyst, from simulated pool water stored in a 757 L (200 gal) tank. The results showed that a sand filter, without perlite, was not efficient at removing Cryptosporidium-sized particles (i.e., the 5-μm microspheres), with removals averaging 19% (or 0.09 log). The sand filter with a thin layer ( or ) of perlite media on top demonstrated removals of 98% (or 1.8 log). The filtration rate was maintained at () in all experiments. These results indicate that perlite may hold promise in reducing the likelihood of outbreaks of cryptosporidiosis associated with swimming pools.
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Acknowledgments
Special thanks to Ray Gaudin, President of the Industrial Insulation Group, LLC, for proposing and financially supporting this investigation. Thanks to Ron Robol of Pentair Water for sizing and arranging the donation of the pump and filter used in this study.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 137 • Issue 12 • December 2011
Pages: 1205 - 1208
Copyright
© 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 31, 2011
Accepted: Jun 9, 2011
Published online: Jun 11, 2011
Published in print: Dec 1, 2011
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