Efficacy of solar water disinfection treatment system in improving rural and peri-urban household drinking water quality and reducing waterborne diarrhoeal diseases

Abstract

Consumption of untreated microbiologically contaminated water, prevalent in many developing countries, exposes the vulnerable population to inordinate health risks including most life-threatening diarrhoeal diseases like cholera and other illnesses. In response, innovative techniques for treating water at the household level, known as household water treatment (HWT), have emerged as practical and cost-effective solutions. Solar water disinfection (SODIS) has gained recognition as one such method that utilizes sunlight to inactivate harmful micro-organisms in water. This review examines the effectiveness of SODIS as an HWT technique by analysing scientifically robust evidence documenting its microbiological efficacy and the positive health gains among SODIS users. It explores the challenges and limitations that impact its inactivation efficiency and sustainability. Its novelty lies in its expanded exploration of the available strategies and techniques for enhancing the effectiveness of SODIS to address its associated limitations and challenges. By providing a comprehensive analysis of the scientific evidence, this review presents compelling reasons for the implementation and scalability of SODIS in the developing world. This novel perspective contributes to the existing literature on improving access to safe drinking water in underserved communities, offering valuable insights into the advancement of SODIS as a practical and sustainable HWT solution.