The invention enables low cost and small-scale automation of drinking water chlorination and supply, based on starting materials, equipment installations and energy sources readily available in remote locations, even under poor infrastructure conditions.
The invention overcomes some of the logistical, technical and economic hindering factors for accessing safe drinking water in remote, underdeveloped communities.
By using readily available chloride salts and solar energy, in a method of solar powered electrochemical chlorination, chlorine gas is generated on the surface of a cathode immersed in the aqueous solution to be treated. This first step and the subsequent hydrolysis to hypochlorite anions occurs in a production tank integrated within a closed piping system, connected to a storage tank and the potable water distribution system, which is protected from air and light exposure. Over a wireless communication line, the system status data is transmitted to a central processor control unit, providing the capability to receive alerts on maintenance needs and, more generally, the output from peripheral sensors, such as consumption data, thus enabling smart dosing of the in situ produced disinfectant into the drinking water.