Edit filter log

'{{refimprove|date=August 2010}} [[Image:Usine Bret MG 1643.jpg|thumb|right|A large-scale [[flocculation]] water filter]] A '''water filter''' removes impurities from [[water]] by means of a fine physical barrier, a chemical process or a biological process. Filters cleanse water to different extents for purposes like [[irrigation]], [[drinking water]], [[aquarium]]s, and [[swimming pool]]s. ==History of drinking water filtration== During the 19th and 20th centuries, water filters for domestic water production were generally divided into [[slow sand filters]] and [[rapid sand filter]]s (also called mechanical filters and American filters). While there were many small-scale water filtration systems prior to 1800, Paisley, Scotland is generally acknowledged as the first city to receive filtered water for an entire town. The Paisley filter began operation in 1804 and was an early type of slow sand filter. Throughout the 1800s, hundreds of slow sand filters were constructed in the UK and on the European continent. An intermittent slow sand filter was constructed and operated at [[Lawrence, Massachusetts]] in 1893 due to continuing typhoid fever epidemics caused by sewage contamination of the water supply.<ref name=Baker>Baker, Moses N. (1981). ''The Quest for Pure Water: the History of Water Purification from the Earliest Records to the Twentieth Century.'' 2nd Edition. Vol. 1. Denver: American Water Works Association, 64-80.</ref> The first continuously operating slow sand filter was designed by [[Allen Hazen]] for the city of Albany, New York in 1897.<ref>“Allen Hazen.” (1930). ''Jour. American Water Works Association.'' 22:9, 1268-70.</ref> The most comprehensive history of water filtration was published by [[Moses N. Baker]] in 1948 and reprinted in 1981.<ref name=Baker/> In the 1800s, mechanical filtration was an industrial process that depended on the addition of [[aluminum sulfate]] prior to the filtration process. The filtration rate for mechanical filtration was typically more than 60 times faster than slow sand filters, thus requiring significantly less land area. The first modern mechanical filtration plant in the U.S. was built at Little Falls, New Jersey for the East Jersey Water Company. [[George W. Fuller]] designed and supervised the construction of the plant which went into operation in 1902.<ref>Fuller, George W. (1902). “The Filtration Works of the East Jersey Water Company, at Little Falls, New Jersey.” ''Transactions of the ASCE.'' 29 (February)): 153-202.</ref> In 1924, [[John R. Baylis]] developed a fixed grid backwash assist system which consisted of pipes with nozzles that injected jets of water into the filter material during expansion.<ref>Baylis, John R. (1959). "Review of Filter Bed Design and Methods of Washing." ''Journal AWWA.'' 51:11 1433-54.</ref> ☺☻☺☻ ♫♪♫♪ hello ==Methods of filtration== {{Main|Filtration}} Filters use sieving, [[adsorption]], [[ion exchange]]s and other processes. Unlike a [[sieve]] or [[Screen filter|screen]], a filter can remove particles much smaller than the holes through which the water passes. ==Types of filters== ===Water treatment plant filters=== {{Main|Water purification}} Types of water filters [[media filter]]s, [[screen filter]]s, [[disk filter]]s, [[slow sand filter bed]]s, [[rapid sand filter]]s and [[cloth filter]]s.<ref>{{cite web|title=Types of Filters|url=http://water.me.vccs.edu/concepts/filters.html|publisher=''[[Mountain Empire Community College]]''|accessdate=2008-10-01}}</ref> ===Point-of-use filters=== [[Point of use water treatment|Point-of-use]] filters for home use include [[activated carbon|granular-activated carbon]] filters (GAC) used for [[carbon filtering]], [[alloy|metallic alloy filters]], [[ceramic water filter|microporous ceramic filters]], carbon block [[resin]] (CBR), [[microfiltration]] and [[ultrafiltration]] membranes. Some filters use more than one filtration method. An example of this is a multi-barrier system. Jug filters can be used for small quantities of drinking water. Some [[kettle]]s have built-in filters, primarily to reduce [[limescale]] buildup. Point-of-use microfiltration devices can be directly installed at water outlets (faucets, showers) in order to protect users against ''[[Legionella]] spp.'', ''[[Pseudomonas]] spp.'', [[Nontuberculous mycobacteria]], ''[[Escherichia coli]]'' and other potentially harmful water [[pathogens]] by providing a barrier to them and/or minimizing patient exposure. ===Certification of Water Filters=== Three organizations are accredited by the [[American National Standards Institute]], and each one of them certify products using ANSI/[[NSF_International|NSF]] standards. Each ANSI/NSF standard requires verification of contaminant reduction performance claims, an evaluation of the unit, including its materials and structural integrity, and a review of the product labels and sales literature. Each certifies that home water treatment units meet or exceed ANSI/NSF and [[United States Environmental Protection Agency|Environmental Protection Agency]] drinking water standards. ANSI/NSF standards are issued in two different sets, one for health concerns (such as removal of specific contaminants (Standard 53, Health Effects) and one for aesthetic concerns (Aesthetic Effects, such as improving taste or appearance of water). Certification from these organizations will specify one or both of these specific standards. '''NSF International''': The NSF Water treatment Device Certification Program requires extensive product testing and unannounced audits of production facilities. The goal of this program is to provide assurance to consumers that the water treatment devices they are purchasing meet the design, material,and performance requirements of national standards. '''Underwriters Laboratories''': [[Underwriters Laboratories]], Inc., is an independent, accredited testing and certification organization that certifies home water treatment units which meet or exceed EPA and ANSI/NSF drinking water standards of contaminant reduction, aesthetic concerns, structural integrity, and materials safety. '''Water Quality Association''':The Water Quality Association is a trade organization that tests water treatment equipment, and awards its Gold Seal to systems that meet or exceed ANSI/NSF standards for contaminant reduction performance, structural integrity, and materials safety. Filters that use reverse osmosis, those labeled as “absolute one micron filters,” or those labeled as certified by an American National Standards Institute (ANSI)- accredited organization to ANSI/NSF Standard 53 for “Cyst Removal” provide the greatest assurance of removing Cryptosporidium. As with all filters, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for filter use and replacement.<ref>{{cite web|title=Water Health Series: Filtration Facts|url=http://www.epa.gov/ogwdw/faq/pdfs/fs_healthseries_filtration.pdf|publisher=United States Environmental Protection Agency}}</ref> ===Portable water filters=== {{Main|Portable water purification}} Water filters are used by hikers, aid organizations during humanitarian emergencies, and the military. These filters are usually small, portable and lightweight (1-2 pounds/0.5-1.0&nbsp;kg or less), and usually filter water by working a mechanical hand pump, although some use a [[siphon]] drip system to force water through while others are built into water bottles. Dirty water is pumped via a screen-filtered flexible silicon tube through a specialized filter, ending up in a container. These filters work to remove [[bacteria]], [[protozoa]] and [[microbial cyst]]s that can cause disease. Filters may have fine meshes that must be replaced or cleaned, and [[ceramic water filter]]s must have their outside abraded when they have become clogged with impurities. These water filters should not be confused with devices or tablets that are [[water purifier]]s, some of which remove or kill [[virus]]es such as [[hepatitis A]] and [[rotavirus]]. ==Water polishing== The term water polishing can refer to any process that removes small (usually microscopic) particulate material, or removes very low concentrations of dissolved material from water. The process and its meaning vary from setting to setting: a manufacturer of [[aquarium]] filters may claim that its filters perform water polishing by capturing "micro particles" within [[nylon]] or [[polyester]] pads just as a chemical engineer can use the term to refer to the removal of magnetic resins from a solution by passing the solution over a bed of magnetic particulate.<ref>[http://www.wipo.int/pctdb/en/wo.jsp?wo=2006063406 "Water Polishing Process."] (Patent description.) Retrieved 2009-11-26.</ref> In this sense, water polishing is simply another term for whole house water filtration systems. ==See also== * [[Backwashing (water treatment)]] * [[Carbon filtering]] * [[Distillation]] * [[Reverse osmosis]] * [[Reverse osmosis plant]] * [[Sand separator]] * [[Settling basin]] * [[Swimming pool sanitation]] ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== *{{Commons category-inline|Water filters}} {{NSRW Poster|Filter}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Water Filter}} [[Category:Water filters]] [[Category:Irrigation]] [[Category:Hiking equipment]]'