Water treatment process using conventional and advanced methods: A comparative study of Malaysia and selected countries

Abstract

Water treatment is the process of removing all those substances, whether biological, chemical, or physical, that are potentially harmful to the water supply for human and domestic use. This treatment helps to produce water that is safe, palatable, clear, colorless, and odorless. The basic steps of water treatment include coagulation, precipitation, filtration, and disinfection. Water treatment before supplying water to consumers is essential to improve water quality to create a sustainable life. Water treatment can eliminate potential or certain harmful substances in the water to prevent the consumption of contaminated water sources that can cause potential health problems. Therefore, it is important to establish a water treatment facility with sufficient capacity to remove pollutants according to standards before being supplied to consumers. In this study, the focus of the discussion is on the use of river water as a source of water for consumers in Japan, Australia, Canada, and Malaysia after a water treatment process. This paper reviews the recent progresses of water treatment process using both conventional and advanced methods. A brief discussion on the water quality index of each country’s rivers is presented. Several potential applications of Industrial Revolution 4.0 technology in the water treatment process are discussed. Adoption of the industrial revolution of technology in water treatment may provide many benefits to this field and excavate more potential improvement. This paper will deliver a scientific and technical overview and useful information to scientists, engineers, and stakeholders who work in this field.