MSES 5030

MD AFZALUL KARIM

UNT ID: 10869394

Summarization of the Case Study: Sweetwater

During early nineties, water filtration for outdoor recreationalists was a great problem due to unavailability of pure and clean water. As the industrial production and development increases contamination of water also increases in accelerated rate. So this contamination leads to breed waterborne pathogens which cause not only gastrointestinal illness but also fatalities. To help serious campers, hikers and climbers from these kind of issues, two kinds of portable water filter were first introduced by General Ecology, Inc. (name as Need) and Katadyn (name as Pocket Filter).In both cases general process to filter the water is the same which is moving the piston up and down inside the cylinder using a pump handle. As a result its created problem to the users due to overweight and difficulty to use. Sandy Platter, a computer peripherals engineer, has a new idea for a portable water-filter device for use by outdoor recreationalists. To implant that idea first he wants to find out the previous drawbacks of the filters. When he investigated the Need device he found that Ergonomics o Clumsy and difficult to handle o Too much weight o Packing problem due to separate bodies for the pump and filter cartridge o Price to value ratio Poor filter material (Polyvinyl chloride plastic) o Not durable o Carbon filter could be cracked easily

From the investigation of the Pocket filter he found that Clumsy to use Chemicals remains in water Filter clogged easily Frequent cleaning is necessary Less durable

To solve this kind of problem, Platter and his friend Aldred worked together to create a new and detailed drawing of a portable filter in CAD software. For a new design a good filtration device is going to be crucial. Previously two kinds of filter were used. One was a surface membrane filter which was able to remove large particles. The other was depth filter which was able to

remove extremely small particles by thick porous material. Moreover these filtrations also depend on the size of the channels. Smaller channels clogged the filter quickly and required to replace. Additionally its very difficult to screen out different level of hazards which was range from large size leaves to 0.2 micron bacteria. Design for fine holes and channels are also important. To overcome the resistance of the flow high pressure is required. Smaller channels required higher pressure. But too high pressure could break the porous structure or contaminated water could be forced around the seals between the filter and its container. To increase the filtration rate activated charcoal was also used to absorb organic molecules, dissolve chemicals. But when it became full, it needed to be replaced. Platter tried to reduce those problems and wanted the price of the portable filter between 40$ to 50$ as previous price confused the customer due to price to value ratio. There are some consumers who are highly knowledgeable about the product and they are always looking for technically smart and quality product. Thinking that in mind Platter found a company where borosilicate glass fiber was used to make labyrinth depth-filter. This filter has the capability to trap materials down to 0.5 micron and remove most of waterborne bacteria and protozoa. As discussed earlier previous filter made of ceramic which is less durable, these new filters are lighter and less susceptible to breakage. To keep the original water taste from impurities a layer of activated charcoal is used with micro filter. As a result when dirty water passed through micro filter it will clean water from particles and when it passed down the charcoal it will preserve the water taste. According to the Sweetwater Guardian the most important needs associated with water purification device is filter. To get pure water an innovative water purification filter design is necessary that can remove debris, bacteria and viruses from water. Also the bottle should be made of good impact and heat resistant material. Because most of the consumers for this product are travelers & they want to use this in extreme condition where heat, cold, moisture will not affect the purity of the water. Activated carbon in this filter system is also necessary for its ability to reduce harmful organic and inorganic substances in the water. So when all of these facilities will combine and market price of the product will be less than it will be a good user valued product.