Designing a new lab water system or retrofitting an existing system requires a thorough understanding and working knowledge of contaminants, purification technologies, industry standards, user requirements, and water distribution options.
A successful water system design begins with a clear and precise definition of user needs throughout the facility. The purity level and volume of water required at each point of use can vary considerably and therefore must be fully assessed in order to properly inform the designer of the water purification system. Once water purity requirements are defined, it is essential to calculate the volume of water that will be required at each use point. This calculation must take into consideration all use points requiring pure water including sink faucets and instruments such as glassware washers. Timing of water usage must also be determined. Is the expected usage relatively consistent over a typical workday or are there times of peak demand? Will water be used over a 24-hour period or be limited to an eight-hour workday? Will there be demand for water on the weekend? When assessing volume requirements, it is also important to estimate the maximum simultaneous usage when there are multiple points of use. This information provides guidance as to the proper size of equipment, flow rates and pressure requirements of the water system designed for the facility.
The top 10 factors/features in our readers’ decisions to buy a water purification system included the following:
| Important | Not Important | Don't Know | |
| Performance of product | 95% | 4% | 1% |
| Durability of product | 94% | 1% | 5% |
| Low maintenance/easy to clean | 92% | 7% | 1% |
| Availability of supplies and accessories | 90% | 5% | 5% |
| Ease of use | 90% | 9% | 1% |
| Value for price paid | 89% | 9% | 2% |
| Total cost of ownership | 88% | 10% | 3% |
| Low operating costs | 87% | 11% | 2% |
| Service and support | 84% | 14% | 2% |
| Warranties | 80% | 17% | 4% |
Deionization was the most common technique our readers used to remove relevant contaminants, with reverse osmosis and ultrafiltration coming second and third.
| Distillation | 11% |
| Deionization | 27% |
| Reverse osmosis | 20% |
| Activated carbon filtration | 10% |
| Microporous filtration | 6% |
| Ultrafiltration | 18% |
| Ultraviolet oxidation | 3% |
| Other | 5% |
Most of our readers use raw potable as their feed source for their principal water purification systems with deionized being the second most popular source out of those we surveyed.
| Raw potable | 41% |
| Deionized | 25% |
| Distilled | 10% |
| Reverse osmosis | 15% |
| Di/RO | 7% |
| Other | 3% |
The purity levels of ASTM Standards lab water required by survey respondents:
| ASTM Type I | 52% |
| ASTM Type II | 30% |
| ASTM Type III | 9% |
| Other | 9% |
The water purification system components survey respondents are using in their labs:
| Storage tank | 21% |
| Dispensing points | 18% |
| UV sterilizer | 15% |
| Distiller | 11% |
| Polisher | 12% |
| Water quality monitor | 17% |
| Water softener | 5% |
| Other | 1% |
The different types of contaminants our readers tend to find in their water include:
| Particulates | 27% |
| Dissolved inorganics (solids and gases) | 27% |
| Dissolved organics | 21% |
| Microorganisms | 17% |
| Pyrogens | 5% |
| Other | 2% |
For more information on water purification systems, visit www.labmanager.com/water-purification
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