Protozoa and Virus Disinfection by Silver- and Copper-Embedded Ceramic Tablets for Water Purification
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 146, Issue 4
Abstract
Point-of-use water treatment (PoUWT) technologies have been shown to reduce incidences of waterborne diseases. However, their effectiveness is limited against the most harmful pathogens, such as protozoa and viruses, due to the inability to deliver effective and safe levels of disinfectant. This paper studies disinfection mechanisms and efficiency of silver and copper against Cryptosporidium parvum, Giardia lamblia, and MS2 bacteriophage through a novel PoUWT method, a ceramic tablet embedded with metallic ions. Results demonstrate that the PoUWT method can deliver safe and effective levels of silver and copper to inhibit sporozoite metabolic ability, and thus disinfect protozoa. Excystation reduced from 74% to 14% for Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts treated with silver-embedded ceramic tablets. Similar results were observed among Giardia lamblia oocysts and copper-treated oocysts. Fluorescence microscopy demonstrated two mechanisms for protozoa disinfection by metallic ions: (1) structural damage of oocyst walls, and (2) alteration of sporozoite structure. Also, MS2 bacteriophage viability reduced by 89% when treated with ceramic tablet treatment. Using the PoUWT method in this study, silver and copper show promise as disinfecting agents for protozoa.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by the US National Science Foundation (Award No. CBET-1438619).
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Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 146 • Issue 4 • April 2020
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©2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 6, 2019
Accepted: Aug 19, 2019
Published online: Jan 27, 2020
Published in print: Apr 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Jun 27, 2020
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