Application of ultraviolet light emitting diodes (UV LEDs) for water disinfection: A review.
Ultraviolet (UV) disinfection is an effective technology for the inactivation of pathogens in water and is of growing interest for industrial application. A new UV source ultraviolet light emitting diode (UV LED) has emerged in the past decade with a number of advantages compared to traditional UV mercury lamps. This promising alternative raises great interest in the research on application of UV LEDs for water treatment. Studies on UV LED water disinfection have increased during the past few years. This article presents a comprehensive review of recent studies on UV LEDs with various wavelengths for the inactivation of different microorganisms. Many inconsistent and incomparable data were found from published studies, which underscores the importance of establishing a standard protocol for studying UV LED inactivation of microorganisms. Different UV sensitivities to UV LEDs and traditional UV lamps were observed in the literature for some microorganisms, which requires further investigation for a better understanding of microorganism response to UV LEDs. The unique aspects of UV LEDs improve inactivation effectiveness by applying LED special features, such as multiple wavelengths and pulsed illumination; however, more studies are needed to investigate the influencing factors and mechanisms. The special features of UV LEDs offer the flexibility of novel reactor designs for a broad application of UV LED reactors.
Water research