“Chemically pure water from which the process of distillation has removed impurities, dissolved salts, and colloidal particles.”
Water contains impurities such as salts and minerals and even bacteria, which are more or less harmful. Mostly these substances are mixed with water when it comes in contact with rocks and soil, which makes it useless for most of the purposes. Human beings can consume salts and some minerals present in water, but chemical substances and other pollutants make it useless for human consumption; even plants and animals cannot drink it, such as hard water. To make this water use, it is passed through different purification processes such as filtration, sedimentation, and distillation. Filtration and sedimentation remove most of the impurities, but for some other purposes, even salts and minerals are dangerous. Thus it needs to be purified. Distillation is the only process through which even these salts and minerals can be removed. However, Distilled Water is also not 100% pure.
History of Water Distillation:
People are using the process of water distillation since 200 AD. Seawater contains an excess amount of salt in it due to which it cannot be consumed. They used to distill seawater into freshwater through which salt was left behind, and water becomes consumable. In ancient times, solar power was used for the distillation process because other heating sources were quite expensive. Another positive aspect of using solar energy is that it is environmentally friendly.
How Does Water Distillation Work?
The process of distillation obtains distilled water. This process is the easiest of all other water purification process. Water distillation process is the cheapest quick and effective method. Through this process the purest form of water is obtained.
Distillation is a process in which liquid water is converted into water vapors through heating. These vapors are then collected in cold surface and condensed. And the distilled water is ready to use. For this process only two things are required one is heat source and the other condenser. The boiling point of water is far less than other contaminants and salt because of which water convert into vapors earlier leaving everything behind. You probably have distilled water many times without even realizing. Distilled water is 99.99% pure
What Can Water Distillation Filter Out
Water distillation can reduce or filter out salts, minerals, chemicals, sediments, metals, and biological contaminants present in the water. Other than this, they effectively filter out arsenic, asbestos, benzene, fluoride, mercury, lead, nitrate, radium, and radon with the use of activated carbon filtration, which effectively treats these chemicals.
Regular water vs. Purified vs. Distilled: What’s the difference?
Regular water or tap water is the water that has not gone through any purification process. In most cases, regular water is safe to consume. However, it varies depending upon where you live. In some places, regular water is highly contaminated that it can be harmful for consumption. Such water needs to be purified. There are different methods of water purification which are used according to the need. Purified water is purer than regular water as it contains fewer impurities and reduces exposure to certain containment’s that can be found in standard water. But still, it contains minerals. Whereas the distilled water doesn’t even contain minerals. It is 99.9% pure. It is free from all kinds of chemicals, minerals, and even salts. Due to the exceptional purity of distilled water, it is commonly used in laboratories and medical facilities rather than for drinking purposes.
Types of Water Distillers:
- Household
This is the single- effect portable distillatory that can be conveniently set in your kitchen counter or your office. A limited amount of water can be distilled from household water distillatory.
- Plumbing distillers
These are installed into your home plumbing system or at your point of use. These filter the water as per requirement, making them cost-efficient. Moreover, they require maintenance as per schedule.
- Commercial distillers
These are used for commercial purposes, such as industries. These are sizable operational use of multiple-effect distillers, which contains multiple boiling chambers. Their capacity is around 75 gallons up to a million gallons of distilled water per day.
Benefits of Distilled Water:
Distilled water is the purest form of water that does not contain any kind of impurities. As this water is free from all containment’s, it is very beneficial. The risk of consumption of harmful biological organisms is reduced. The chemicals present in water are removed through distillation; thus, the risk of damage to the material is reduced, such as iron rust. It is used for medical purposes, which ensure the safety of patients and save them from further infections. Using distilled water for experimentation can comparatively give more accurate results. Distilled water is quite beneficial for you to use than regular water.
Drawbacks of Distilled water
Distilled water is best to use; however, it has some minor disadvantages, such as it is challenging to store because the water’s dissolution property of distilled water is stronger than the regular one. Thus, it can dissolve the storage containers in it. It is not energy-efficient and is also a prolonged process. Additionally, this process requires a lot of heat energy as it cannot remove impurities at lower boiling points, making it detrimental to the environment.
Common Uses of Distilled Water
Distilled water is the most purified form is used for many purposes other than drinking. Some of these are mentioned below:
- Batteries
- Stream irons
- Car cooling systems
- Household appliances
- Aquariums (required minerals are provided through fish food)
- Laboratories (mostly for experimentation)
- Sterile Medical uses
- Scientific experiments
- Humidifiers
- Canned vegetables and fruits
- Cosmetics use
Conclusion:
After reading above mentioned information, you will be well aware of What Is Distilled Water and the distillation process, why it shares a shelf with filtered water in the supermarket, competes with tap water at home, and why it is being raved around in health industry. This is all because it is cost-efficient as well as is present in its purest form. Get more informative blogs related to Water Softeners, filtration and much more. Read More
