AQR Safe Water: A Critical Measurement Challenge

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Innovate UK
Innovate UK
Innovate UK
Innovate UK
Innovate UK

£269,935

Sept. 30, 2019

July 31, 2020

"AQR has identified a clear market opportunity for a viable, sustainable and reliable drinking water treatment process at small community and single household scale. Currently, the UK water industry heavily subsidises treatment in rural, smaller communities since the cost of providing effective treatment makes it unaffordable for these customers.

The AQR Safe Water(r) process provides effective disinfection in raw surface waters that can be particularly challenging due to a high organic, coloured content. Additional pre-treatment is necessary for current disinfection processes to operate effectively. UV disinfection can only operate in clear water, has significant power requirements and requires regular replacement of bulbs. Chlorine disinfection has been trialled at small-scale but failed due to the dosage requirements causing ineffective disinfection by over- or under-dosing.

This project is concerned with understanding the interaction between the AQR Safe Water(r) disinfection process and organic content in raw surface water, to confirm the treated water is safe for human consumption. Current regulation is based on UV and chlorine disinfection that requires UV Transmittance (UVT) to reach 100 % and organic content to be reduced to zero, so that UV disinfection can operate effectively and chlorine does not produce potentially carcinogenic byproducts. However, water is visibly clear above 60 % UVT and if not using chlorine, there is no risk of producing harmful byproducts. The outputs from this project will help inform regulation and expedite AQR's market entry and retain AQR's significant competitive advantage.

Supply of safe drinking water is taken for granted by developed nations, but is becoming under threat from ageing infrastructure, an increasing global population and climate change. Water security is a global challenge, alongside strict global sustainability and resource-efficiency targets to be achieved by 2030 \[source: UN Sustainable Development Goal 6\]. Globally, 8 out of 10 people in rural areas still have no access to safe drinking water \[source: UN Millennium Development Goal 7\]. The demand for water is rising, set to exceed supply in the UK as early as 2025 in highly populated areas \[source: BBC\], while the rising cost of water creates incentives for water companies to explore water conservation and re-use. The AQR Safe Water(r) system is a low-power process that uses no added chemicals and has a flexible, modular unit assembly. It can be easily operated using mains, solar or wind power and is ideal for single households and small communities, i.e. in rural and dispersed environments, globally."