All Topics  
Filter (water)

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Filter (water)
 
 
  Topics Filter (water) Topic Home

A water filter removes impurities from water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 by means of a fine physical barrier, a chemical process or a biological process. Filters cleanse water to various extents for irrigation
Irrigation

Irrigation is an artificial application of water to the soil usually for assisting in growing crops. In crop production it is mainly used in dry areas and in periods of rainfall shortfalls, but also to protect plants against frost....
, drinking water
Drinking water

Drinking water is water that is of sufficiently high quality so that it can be consumed or utilized without risk of immediate or long term harm....
, aquarium
Aquarium

An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. fishkeeping use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants....
s, and swimming pool
Swimming pool

A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is an artificially enclosed body of water intended for swimming or water-based recreation....
s.

ers use sieving, adsorption
Adsorption

Adsorption is a process that occurs when a gas or liquid solute accumulates on the surface of a solid or a liquid , forming a film of molecules or atoms ....
, ion exchange
Ion exchange

Ion exchange is an exchange of ions between two electrolytes or between an electrolyte solution and a complex . In most cases the term is used to denote the processes of purification, separation, and decontamination of aqueous and other ion-containing solutions with solid polymeric or mineralic 'ion exchangers'....
s and other processes. Unlike a sieve
Sieve

In general, a sieve separates wanted/desired elements from unwanted material using a tool such as a mesh, net or other filtration or distillation methods, but it is also used for classification of powders by particle size, or for size measurement as an analytical technique....
 or screen
Screen

Screen may refer to:...
, a filter can remove particles much smaller than the holes through which the water passes.
s of water filters include media filter
Media filter

A media filter is a type of filter utilizing a bed of sand, crushed granite or other material to filter water for drinking, swimming pools, aquaculture, irrigation, stormwater management and other applications....
s, screen filter
Screen filter

A screen filter is a type of filter utilizing a rigid or flexible screen to separate sand and other fine particles out of water for irrigation or other applications....
s, disk filter
Disk filter

A disk filter is a type of filter used primarily in irrigation, similar to a screen filter, except that the filter cartridge is made of a number of disks stacked on top of each other like a pile of poker chips....
s, slow sand filter beds, rapid sand filter
Rapid sand filter

The rapid sand filter or rapid gravity filter is a type of filter used in water purification and is commonly used in municipal water treatment facilities....
s and cloth filter
Cloth filter

Developed for use in Bangladesh, the cloth filter is a simple and cost-effective appropriate technology method for reducing the contamination of drinking water....
s.

ers for home use include granular activated carbon filters
Activated carbon

Activated carbon, also called activated charcoal or activated coal, is a form of carbon that has been processed to make it extremely porous and thus to have a very large surface area available for adsorption or chemical reactions....
 (GAC) used for carbon filtering
Carbon filtering

Carbon filtering is a method of filtering that uses a piece of activated carbon to remove contaminants and impurities, utilizing chemical adsorption....
, metallic alloy filters
Alloy

An alloy is a partial or complete solid solution of one or more chemical element in a metallic matrix. Complete solid solution alloys give single solid phase microstructure, while partial solutions give two or more phases that may be homogeneous in distribution depending on thermal history....
, microporous ceramic filters
Ceramic water filter

Ceramic water filters are an inexpensive and effective type of water filter, that rely on the small pore size of ceramic material to filter dirt, debris, and bacteria out of water....
, carbon block resin (CBR) and ultrafiltration
Ultrafiltration

Ultrafiltration is a variety of membrane filtration in which hydrostatic pressure forces a liquid against a semipermeable membrane. Suspended solids and solutes of high molecular weight are retained, while water and low molecular weight solutes pass through the membrane....
 membranes.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Filter (water)'
Start a new discussion about 'Filter (water)'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Recent Posts

Reverse Osmosis, Water Filters, Replacement Cartridges, UV Disinfection Systems and more








Encyclopedia


A water filter removes impurities from water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
 by means of a fine physical barrier, a chemical process or a biological process. Filters cleanse water to various extents for irrigation
Irrigation

Irrigation is an artificial application of water to the soil usually for assisting in growing crops. In crop production it is mainly used in dry areas and in periods of rainfall shortfalls, but also to protect plants against frost....
, drinking water
Drinking water

Drinking water is water that is of sufficiently high quality so that it can be consumed or utilized without risk of immediate or long term harm....
, aquarium
Aquarium

An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. fishkeeping use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants....
s, and swimming pool
Swimming pool

A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is an artificially enclosed body of water intended for swimming or water-based recreation....
s.

Methods of filtration

Filters use sieving, adsorption
Adsorption

Adsorption is a process that occurs when a gas or liquid solute accumulates on the surface of a solid or a liquid , forming a film of molecules or atoms ....
, ion exchange
Ion exchange

Ion exchange is an exchange of ions between two electrolytes or between an electrolyte solution and a complex . In most cases the term is used to denote the processes of purification, separation, and decontamination of aqueous and other ion-containing solutions with solid polymeric or mineralic 'ion exchangers'....
s and other processes. Unlike a sieve
Sieve

In general, a sieve separates wanted/desired elements from unwanted material using a tool such as a mesh, net or other filtration or distillation methods, but it is also used for classification of powders by particle size, or for size measurement as an analytical technique....
 or screen
Screen

Screen may refer to:...
, a filter can remove particles much smaller than the holes through which the water passes.

Types of filters


Water treatment plant filters

Types of water filters include media filter
Media filter

A media filter is a type of filter utilizing a bed of sand, crushed granite or other material to filter water for drinking, swimming pools, aquaculture, irrigation, stormwater management and other applications....
s, screen filter
Screen filter

A screen filter is a type of filter utilizing a rigid or flexible screen to separate sand and other fine particles out of water for irrigation or other applications....
s, disk filter
Disk filter

A disk filter is a type of filter used primarily in irrigation, similar to a screen filter, except that the filter cartridge is made of a number of disks stacked on top of each other like a pile of poker chips....
s, slow sand filter beds, rapid sand filter
Rapid sand filter

The rapid sand filter or rapid gravity filter is a type of filter used in water purification and is commonly used in municipal water treatment facilities....
s and cloth filter
Cloth filter

Developed for use in Bangladesh, the cloth filter is a simple and cost-effective appropriate technology method for reducing the contamination of drinking water....
s.

Point-of-use filters

Filters for home use include granular activated carbon filters
Activated carbon

Activated carbon, also called activated charcoal or activated coal, is a form of carbon that has been processed to make it extremely porous and thus to have a very large surface area available for adsorption or chemical reactions....
 (GAC) used for carbon filtering
Carbon filtering

Carbon filtering is a method of filtering that uses a piece of activated carbon to remove contaminants and impurities, utilizing chemical adsorption....
, metallic alloy filters
Alloy

An alloy is a partial or complete solid solution of one or more chemical element in a metallic matrix. Complete solid solution alloys give single solid phase microstructure, while partial solutions give two or more phases that may be homogeneous in distribution depending on thermal history....
, microporous ceramic filters
Ceramic water filter

Ceramic water filters are an inexpensive and effective type of water filter, that rely on the small pore size of ceramic material to filter dirt, debris, and bacteria out of water....
, carbon block resin (CBR) and ultrafiltration
Ultrafiltration

Ultrafiltration is a variety of membrane filtration in which hydrostatic pressure forces a liquid against a semipermeable membrane. Suspended solids and solutes of high molecular weight are retained, while water and low molecular weight solutes pass through the membrane....
 membranes. Some filters use more than one filtration method. Jug filters can be used for small quantities of drinking water. Some kettle
Kettle

A kettle, sometimes called teakettle, tea kettle or the pot, is a small kitchen appliance used for boiling water in preparation for making tea or other beverages requiring hot water....
s have built-in filters, primarily to reduce limescale
Limescale

Limescale is the hard, off-white, chalky deposit found in kettles, hot-water boilers and the inside of inadequately maintained hot-water central heating systems....
 buildup.

Portable water filters

Water filters are used by hikers, by aid organizations during humanitarian emergencies, and by the military. These filters are usually small, portable and light (1-2 pounds/0.5-1.0 kg or less), and usually filter water by working a mechanical hand pump, although some use a siphon
Siphon

A siphon is a continuous tube that allows liquid to drain from a reservoir through an intermediate point that is higher, or lower, than the reservoir, the flow being driven only by the difference in hydrostatic pressure without any need for pumping....
 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
Bacteria

The Bacteria are a large group of unicellular microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals....
, protozoa
Protozoa

Protozoan are microorganisms classified as unicellular eukaryotes. While there is no exact definition of the term "protozoan", most scientists use the word to refer to a unicellular heterotrophic protist, such as an amoeba or a ciliate....
 and microbial cyst
Microbial cyst

A microbial cyst is a resting or dormant stage of a microorganism, usually a bacterium or a protist, that helps the organism to tide over unfavorable environmental conditions....
s that can cause disease. Filters may have fine meshes that must be replaced or cleaned, and ceramic water filter
Ceramic water filter

Ceramic water filters are an inexpensive and effective type of water filter, that rely on the small pore size of ceramic material to filter dirt, debris, and bacteria out of water....
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 purifiers, some of which remove or kill virus
Virus

A virus is a Optical microscope#Limitations of light microscopes infectious agent that is unable to grow or reproduce outside a host cell . Viruses infect all cellular life....
es such as hepatitis A
Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A, , is an Acute infectious disease of the liver caused by Hepatitis A virus, which is most commonly transmitted by the fecal-oral route via contaminated food or drinking water....
 and rotavirus
Rotavirus

Rotavirus is a genus of double-stranded RNA virus in the family Reoviridae. It is the leading single cause of Diarrhea among infants and young children....
.

Homemade water filters

Water filters can be made on-site using local materials such as grass, charcoal
Charcoal

Charcoal is the blackish residue consisting of impure carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances....
 (e.g. from burned firewood), and sand. These filters have been used by soldiers and outdoor enthusiasts. Due to their low cost they can be made and used by anyone, including the poor
Poor

Poor is an adjective related to a state of poverty, low quality or pity.People with the surname Poor:* Charles Henry Poor, a US Navy officer...
, who often do not have access to safe drinking water
Drinking water

Drinking water is water that is of sufficiently high quality so that it can be consumed or utilized without risk of immediate or long term harm....
. Regrettably such filters do little if anything to mitigate against pathogens and other harmful constituents and can give a false sense of security that the water so produced is potable.

See also

  • Backwash (physical phenomenon)
    Backwash (physical phenomenon)

    Backwash is the backwards flow of air or water. Backwash can be created naturally by waves rebounding off a beach or other obstacle. It is created by Marine propulsion devices such as an oar or engine....
  • Water purification
    Water purification

    This article discusses large scale, municipal water purification. For portable/emergency water purification, see Portable water purification.Water purification is the process of removing undesirable chemical and biological contaminants from raw water....
  • Reverse osmosis
    Reverse osmosis

    Reverse osmosis is a filtration process typically used for water. It works by using pressure to force a solution through a semi-permeable membrane, retaining the solute on one side and allowing the pure solvent to pass to the other side....
  • Distillation
    Distillation

    Distillation is a method of separation process mixtures based on differences in their Volatility in a boiling liquid mixture. Distillation is a unit operation, or a physical separation process, and not a chemical reaction....
  • Carbon filtering
    Carbon filtering

    Carbon filtering is a method of filtering that uses a piece of activated carbon to remove contaminants and impurities, utilizing chemical adsorption....
  • Sand separator
    Sand separator

    A hydrocyclone is a device to classify/separate or sort particles in a liquid suspension based on the densities of the particles. A hydrocyclone may be used to separate solids from liquids or to separate liquids of different density....
  • Settling basin
    Settling basin

    A settling basin, settling pond or decant pond is a place where very fine particles from water are removed by means of gravity. The turbid water enters the basin at one end and the cleaner water is taken out at the other end by decanting....
  • Swimming pool sanitation
    Swimming pool sanitation

    Swimming pool sanitation refers to both visual clarity and levels of microflora, such as bacteria and viruses in swimming pools. The goal of sanitation is to prevent the spread of diseases and pathogens between users....


External links