Project Lead(s): Petra Nnamani
Issue
Water-borne diseases are still very common worldwide, and are far more serious an issue in Nigeria and other developing countries, due to contamination and pollution.
Many of the commercially available water filters are expensive; there is a need to develop alternative filters that are more affordable.
Solution
The project was aimed at using the seeds of a locally available tree (called Moringa oleifera) to provide point-of-use treatment of water (i.e., a filter) from unprotected drinking sources in the rural South East States of Nigeria.
Moringa seeds were modified so that their properties could be utilized in water filtration.
A jar test was performed to determine the concentration of Moringa needed to clean 1L of water for both wet and dry seasons, which gave 200 mg/L in the wet season and 50 mg/L for dry season water. This was scaled up to 20L capacity and the result rechecked.
A simple-to-use water purifier prototype was constructed with aluminium sheets. The three component assembly of the purifier involved (i) a tripod stand on which rested (ii) the purifier body (a cylinder with cone base and two taps) with (iii) a cover/lid (onto which is attached a stainless stirrer that can be manually or electrically operated) to treat water.
A transparent plastic bucket demo-prototype was used to demonstrate the process of moringa water purification to several communities.
In total, 200 of such plastic buckets as well as 70 constructed purifiers were distributed to communities in the project area.
Moringa seeds were also distributed to encourage massive planting of the tree, since the plant grows rapidly in Nigeria, within just six months of planting.
Outcome
Water treated with a filter and/or coagulant contained in moringa seeds yielded results that compared favourably with World Health Organization/European Union standards for potable water.
A three-phase framework for transition to the application of moringa seeds for a public water treatment facility has been suggested, starting with consolidation and re-engineering of the point-of-use treatment facility for rural and other remote populations, and then design and construction of a new, small-scale waterworks for a semi-urban population in the south east of Nigeria.