Test phase for cutting-edge European water treatment system started in India

A Europe/India collaborative research project, ECO-India, starts testing the waters for its first rural community deployment in West Bengal. adelphi, as part of the consortium, helps developing energy-efficient systems for advanced filtration and desinfection of drinking water supplies.

At the end of February, the Indo-Europe collaborative research project "ECO-India" arrives at a new stage: The local waters will be tested with a shipment of cutting-edge European water-treatment technology en route to India for its first rural community deployment in West Bengal. Co-funded by the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) and the Indian Department of Science and Technology (DST), ECO-India project is focused on developing innovative and sustainable approaches for producing potable water at community level.

Coordinated by the Tyndall National Institute, Ireland the FP7 consortium represents a world-class interdisciplinary research team from four research institutes - Tyndall-UCC, Danmarks Tekniske Universitet (DTU), Helmholtz-Zentrum für Umweltforschung GmbH (UFZ) and adelphi research gGmbH - and three SMEs (Trustwater, Dryden Aqua, AGM).

A comprehensive, sustainable approach for water treatment

adelphi jointly with support of Technical University Berlin has conceptualized the sustainable setup of the water supply at the project site, in cooperation with an Indian consortium co-ordinated by Prof. Asis Mazumdar from Jadavpur University who is partnering with the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur and the SME Super Technicians.

The comprehensive, sustainable approach includes catchment area management for rainwater harvesting, renovation of a pond with a silt trap and an alternative filtration system consisting of horizontal roughing filters slow sand filters and activated carbon filters. The system runs on solar power. In addition a 24/7 continuous water supply including sanitation solutions and a waste water collection with a reedbed filtration system has been conceptualized.

The tasks of the consortium are distributed as follows: Dryden Aqua and Trustwater have developed energy-efficient systems for advanced filtration and disinfection. UFZ develops a field deployable arsenic sensor while an online water quality monitoring system is developed by AGM. Tyndall-UCC will focus on the development of novel capacitive modules as well as development of novel dissolved oxygen sensors. DTU will assess the biogas generation potential of the waste water.

Outline of the project's concept in the conference paper "Sustainable Integrated Water Supply for Rural Communities"