Water Treatment for Bottled Water Production
Introduction
Market reports predict that over the next four years, sales of bottled water will experience the most rapid growth in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. This trend is driven by the increasing demand for potable water due to population growth, particularly in developing countries. As the world's population continues to increase, the demand for clean, safe drinking water will also rise, and the market for bottled water is expected to grow accordingly.
ROTEK has been a leading provider of water treatment systems for the bottled water industry for the past 20 years. Our focus on water treatment technology enables us to provide reliable and high-quality water through our systems. Unlike our competitors, who offer a complete solution including filling and packaging machinery, we specialize solely in water treatment technology, allowing us to excel in this area and provide our customers with the best possible water treatment systems.
ROTEK uses a variety of water purification technologies including:
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Reverse osmosis, Ultra-filtration, and Nano-filtration plants
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Media filtration, water softening, and chemical dosing systems
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Electro-deionization as stand-alone or combined with RO.
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Resin-based ion exchange systems
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UV and corona discharge Ozone sanitation systems
Concerns
Water quality is always the main concern for bottled water production. In order to find out if the raw water has met the standard of drinking water, Raw Water Quality Analysis must be completed and send it to us for further system design recommendations.
The drinking of distilled water has been both advocated and discouraged for health reasons. The lack of naturally occurring minerals in distilled water has raised some concerns. The Journal of General Internal Medicine[16] published a study on the mineral contents of different waters available in the US. The study concluded:
Drinking water sources available to North Americans may contain high levels of Ca2+, Mg2+, and Na+ and may provide clinically important portions of the recommended dietary intake of these minerals. Physicians should encourage patients to check the mineral content of their drinking water, whether tap or bottled and choose water most appropriate for their needs.
Design Criteria
Based on the raw water quality analysis, we will provide our design suggestions followed by the 4 major treatment setups:
Filtration Systems
This section is responsible for filtering out most of the fine particles, heavy metals, chlorine, organic matter, bacteria, color & odors. The filtration system usually consists of a Clino-X Multimedia Sand Filter, Activated Carbon Filter, Water Softener, Ultra-Filtration System, Anti-Scale, and Chlorination Chemical Dosing Systems.
1st Pass Purification Systems
Reverse osmosis (RO) is a water purification technology that ROTEK uses most of the time for many industries. RO can remove many types of molecules and ions from solutions and is used in both industrial processes and to produce potable water. Depending on the raw water quality, if raw water TDS is below 50 ppm, then this section of the purification system may not be required as part of the design for bottled water production.
Remineralization Systems
Although RO removes everything from the water (including good and bad minerals),
however low-mineralized water has a few adverse effects:
- High corrosion potential
- Dietary deficiency causes risks of ischaemic heart and cerebrovascular disease (WHO, 2005a; WHO, 2006; Cotruvo, 2006)
The WHO recommends 10 mg/L of Magnesium and 30 mg/L of Calcium for drinking water. Therefore adding beneficial minerals to the product water is a process called remineralization. ROTEK uses natural minerals called "Camag" for adding pure Magnesium and Calcium to the product water with great improvement on the taste and pH level.
Disinfection Systems
The most common bacteria found in bottled water is Pseudomonas fluorescens, which is common in freshwater springs. It is not considered to be a health threat until you leave the bottle open for extended periods and the bacteria begin to react with the carcinogens in the plastic. Reducing bacteria and microbial to the minimum is the most important issue in the bottled water production business. ROTEK disinfection system consists of UV sterilizer, Nanosilver Activated Carbon, 0.2-micron filter, and ozone disinfection. With four levels of protection, the ROTEK disinfection system will make sure the bacteria level is reduced to nil before filling the bottle.