UV+Filtration, despite the myth it is not always enough to lock out bacteria

Even if UV and filtration can eliminate 99.99% (and even more) of bacteria from water and other liquids, the remaining 0.01% can sometimes cause many more problems than expected. Indeed, even those few bacteria can settle on surfaces in contact with water/liquid, forming the so called "biofilm". Since the number of such microorganisms grows exponentially (they duplicate themselves), this can be a huge threat, in particular in Food&Beverage production. By the way, more than 90% of bacteria live in biofilm (not free in the water), and this is also the ideal environment for the proliferation of pathogens.

Read more at: http://www.alvimcleantech.com/cms/en/uv-filtration-despite-the-myth-it-is-not-always-enough-to-lock-out-bacteria

Media

Taxonomy

• Bacteria
• Ultrafiltration
• UV Disinfection
• Filtration
• Food Processing
• Biofilm Monitoring Systems
• Biofilm Sensors

1 Comment

1. Agree. Treatment of fresh water for use in industrial processes needs to be done with care. For example, paper processes with UV light treatment of the incoming freshwater allows the problematic filamentous bacteria to survive where they can quickly grow. Many of these have sheaths that protect the bacterial cells. Unlike oxidants, UV has no persistence. Once the surviving bacteria reach the nutrient-rich process they attach and form biofilms. www.imicrobial.com Linda Robertson