Treatment process
Ceramic filtration
A porous ceramic element with a controlled pore size, widely used in household and humanitarian settings because it is robust, cleanable and needs no power.
Key facts
- Scale
- Household
- Treatment stage
- Filtration
How it works
Water passes through a fired ceramic body with pores typically around 0.2–0.5 micrometres. Some elements are impregnated with silver to inhibit growth on the filter, and many combine a carbon core.
What it removes — and what it does not
| Row | Removes | Does not remove |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bacteria and protozoa including Cryptosporidium, at sub-micrometre pore sizes | Viruses, which are smaller than the pore size |
| 2 | Turbidity and sediment | Dissolved salts, nitrate, fluoride, arsenic |
| 3 | — | PFAS, unless a carbon or specialist core is fitted |
Trade-offs
- Cleanable by brushing, giving a long life
- Flow rate falls as the surface blocks
- Fragile; a cracked element passes water unfiltered with no visible sign at the outlet
Related intelligence
Reverse osmosissame topicChlorinationsame topicGranular activated carbonsame topicCombined sewer overflowsame topicIon exchange softeningsame topicUltraviolet disinfectionsame topicCoagulation and flocculationsame topicActivated sludgesame topicRapid gravity filtrationsame topicChloraminationsame topicDistillationsame topicSlow sand filtrationsame topic
Sources
- World Health Organization — Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality. Public but restricted · CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO
- NSF International / American National Standards Institute — NSF/ANSI drinking water treatment unit standards. Public but restricted · Publisher terms — public access, reuse not clearly granted
- American Water Works Association — AWWA standards, water audits and utility benchmarking. Public but restricted · Publisher terms — public access, reuse not clearly granted