Effect of the reflection from the reactor walls
on the energy efficiency of UV water disinfection units

Summary

The results of a theoretical study of possible improving the effective dose of irradiation in a water disinfection unit with ultraviolet (UV) radiation without increasing the lamp power, as well as studying the effect of the radiation reflection from the reactor inner surface on the operation of the disinfection units are presented. The calculations were carried out for the most popular design with one lamp and a cylindrical reactor with specular reflection from the walls. The calculations have shown that at a high reflection coefficient of radiation and at certain ratios of the effective length of the propagation of UV radiation in water and the dimensions of the reactor, the energy efficiency, i. e., the plant capacity per unit of power consumed, can be increased by 35–40 % compared to the already known designs.

Key words

energy efficiency , water disinfection , ultraviolet irradiation , effective length of radiation propagation