Established in 1949, Aquafine Corporation is a Southern California – based company recognized as one of the largest ultraviolet equipment manufacturers in the world. Located in Valencia, United States, Aquafine’s state-of-the-art facility and UV technology allows advanced UV water treatment systems to meet the changing requirements and needs of a diverse customer base around the world.
Light is electromagnetic radiation, or radiant energy traveling in the form of waves. Ultraviolet (UV) energy is found in the electromagnetic spectrum between visible light and x-rays and can best be described as invisible radiation. The energy employed for UV water treatment is further categorized into two primary levels measured as wavelengths – 254nm and 185nm.
For disinfection purpose, the 254nm wavelength is utilized. The UV light penetrates the outer cell wall of the microorganism, passes through the cell body, reaches the DNA, and alters the genetic material. The microorganisms are thereby destroyed in a non-chemical manner.
The 254nm UV light is also used to destroy residual ozone present in a water stream.The 185nm UV light, utilized in chlorine destruction and TOC reduction applications, decomposes the organic molecules.
The use of UV technology for water treatment has several inherent advantages. UV light does not ‘add’ anything to the water stream such as undesirable color, odor, chemicals, or taste, nor does it generate harmful by-products. It only imparts energy to the water stream in the form of UV light to accomplish the process of disinfection, TOC reduction, ozone destruction or chlorine/chloramine destruction. UV disinfection produces no residual disinfectant to the finished water.
Disinfection is the most common application of UV water treatment. All living organisms contain DNA that 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. If the dosage is not optimized, then complete inhibition of replication will not occur. Besides, 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.
UV radiation can effectively eliminate residual chlorine/chloramine present in water. UV is commonly used to replace conventional dechlorination technology such as activated carbon filtration and sodium metabisulfite injection. Carbon beds are excellent breeding grounds for bacteria to thrive and proliferate. On the other hand, chemical addition involves the introduction of an added substance and is therefore undesirable. As an alternative to remove chlorine, UV technology can be utilized to destroy chlorine/chloramine, thereby eliminating the need for chemical handling and bacteria problems.
In specific water treatment applications, ozone is applied to the water stream to oxidize trace organics or to disinfect the piping and distribution system, but residual ozone is often left behind. Aquafine® ozone destruction units add UV energy to ozone, catalyzing the ozone into harmless oxygen. Aquafine®ozone destruction units can be guaranteed to completely destroy the ozone in the water and thereby help insure the integrity of the process and the product.
In ultrapure water applications, Aquafine® UV systems are used for the effective reduction of organics, commonly referred to as TOC otherwise known as Total Oxidizable Carbon. UV light in a 185nm wavelength promotes the formation of free radicals, leading to the oxidation of organics into CO2 and H2O and is more powerful than the 254nm used in disinfection applications. Efficient in high volume ultrapure, waste or reclaim applications, Aquafine TOC systems have the flexibility to serve indoor or outdoor installations and are also available in modular skid designs. Aquafine ultraviolet systems are a safe and effective alternative for TOC destruction, providing low maintenance costs and utilizing non-toxic UV light with minimal byproducts.
