Evaluation of household water filtration technologies for treating high turbidity, pathogen-contaminated water in developing regions

ABSTRACT Microbial contamination and high turbidity in drinking water remain challenges in rural areas of the developing world. This study investigated the treatment efficiency of household water filtration systems for highly turbid and microbially contaminated water. Several biosand filter variants, including conventional biosand filter (BSF), charcoal-enhanced biosand filter (CBSF), scoria-enhanced biosand filter (SBSF), and charcoal-enhanced upflow biosand filter (CUBSF), were constructed using local materials, along with commercial tulip candle filter (TCF). These filtration systems were evaluated over a 42-day operational period to assess their flow rates and efficiencies in removing microbial contaminants and physicochemical impurities from water. All filters achieved high efficiency in removing turbidity, with removal exceeding 99% on most days, consistently meeting the < 5 NTU standard. After 40 days of operation, fecal coliform removal efficiencies reached 95% (BSF), 98.8% (CBSF), 100% (SBSF), 91.7% (CUBSF), and 100% (TCF). CUBSF had the highest flow rate (240 - 400 l/h), while TCF had the lowest (0.4 - 16 l/h) among all filters. Despite some variations, physicochemical parameters remained within drinking water standards. Scoria-enhanced biosand filter emerged as the most effective option, combining high microbial removal rates with practical flow rate, making it a viable solution for rural communities in developing regions.