UVC pre-treatment options for phytoplankton and zooplankton in drinking water processing

生产清洁和安全的饮用水是一个复杂的多步骤过程，受水源水质的影响很大。浮游植物和浮游动物可以在多个阶段干扰这一过程。例如，水源水中的藻类可导致饮用水净化中使用的膜结垢，并在水华期间释放有毒化合物，进一步威胁饮用水的安全和可持续供应。同样，浮游动物可以在进水管中定居并改变水流，从而增加运营成本。虽然特洛伊技术公司正在使用紫外线-C（UVC）处理来净化饮用水，但人们对UVC作为水源水预处理方案的功效知之甚少。具体而言，目前尚不清楚UVC处理在多大程度上，特别是在多长时间内可以减少原水中浮游植物和浮游动物的繁殖。然而，当评估UVC作为预处理选项时，这些参数是至关重要的，原因有两个：1）需要更多的研究来更好地了解UVC对生物体及其修复机制的影响，2）Trojan Technologies对这个问题感兴趣，因为它将允许他们在水处理的这个新方面将其UVC单元商业化。该项目是Heyland实验室和Trojan Technologies之间Engage和Engage PLUS赠款的延续，Trojan Technologies是使用紫外线（UV）开发水处理解决方案的行业领导者。 该项目将测试减少饮用水源中浮游植物和浮游动物的新技术。具体来说，我们将调查UVC作为源水预处理的效果，并评估选定的浮游植物和浮游动物物种的寿命和生存。UVC治疗的剂量反应将为UVC的这种新应用提供关键的见解，并允许Trojan Technologies评估其在工业规模应用中的效用。

Producing clean and safe drinking water is a complex and multi-step process that is affected significantly by source water quality. Phytoplankton and zooplankton can interfere with this process in multiple stages. For example, algae in source water can lead to fouling of membranes used in drinking water clean-up and can also release toxic compounds during bloom conditions, further threatening the safe and sustainable supply of drinking water. Similarly, zooplankton can settle in intake pipes and alter water flow, hence increasing operating costs. While Trojan Technologies is using Ultraviolet-C (UVC) treatment to clean-up drinking water, little is known about the efficacy of UVC as a pre-treatment option of source water. Specifically, it is unknown to what extent and especially for how long UVC treatment can reduce the propagation of phytoplankton and zooplankton in raw water. These parameters are critical, however, when assessing UVC as a pre-treatment option for two reasons: 1) More research is required to better understand the effect of UVC on organisms and their repair mechanisms and 2) Trojan Technologies is interested in this question as it would allow them to commercialize their UVC units in the context of this new aspect of water treatment. The proposed project is a continuation of an Engage and Engage PLUS grant between the Heyland lab and Trojan Technologies, an industry leader in the development of water treatment solutions using ultraviolet (UV) light. The project will test novel technology to reduce phytoplankton and zooplankton in drinking water sources. Specifically, we will investigate the effect of UVC as a source water pre-treatment and assess on the longevity and survival of selected phytoplankton and zooplankton species. Dose responses of UVC treatment will provide critical insights into this novel application of UVC and allow Trojan Technologies to assess its utility in industry scale applications.