What Types of Water Purification Systems Are Used To Meet Critical Water Standards in Sterile Processing?
Critical water has specific requirements that are laid out by AAMI ST108. The first part of the process for critical water treatment is the same as the process for utility water. This initial processing includes reverse osmosis, which removes 99% of dissolved solids. Further steps for critical water processing include UV, deionization and sub micron filtration.
UV Disinfection
Specialized usage of UV reduces Total Organic Compounds and is effective at disinfection. The choice of UV wavelength is important as the use of a higher energy level than standard UV systems usage is needed.
Twin Bed Deionization
In the next step the water is processed with deionizers to further reduce conductivity, alkalinity, and all cation and anion concentrations in the water. Deionizers are also highly effective at reducing silica and silicic acid.
Mixed Bed Deionization
Mixed bed deionization is the next step for reducing ions in the water. Twin bed deionization is often before mixed bed deionization as it is more efficient. Mixed bed deionization is used for polishing and to further reduce silica and silicic acid.
UV and Filtering
The final series of steps may include microfiltration to reduce suspended solids in the water and to prepare it for final UV disinfection. This final UV disinfection further disinfects the water by deactivating any organic material that is still in the water. Finally the water is run through an endotoxin filter to remove any small particles still in the water. This is often organic material that was deactivated in the final UV processing.
All of these steps result in critical water that meets the AAMI ST108 critical processing standard. For more information on ST108 and the standards for utility and critical water systems, contact LCS today.
