Decrease In Water Consumption Research Articles

Compositional, thermal and microstructural characterization of the Nopal (opuntia ficus indica), for addition in commercial cement mixtures

The Nopal (opuntia ficus indica) from remote times has contributed like food and additive product in prehispanic constructions; although it grows in all the Colombian territory is very little used and its contribution in mixtures of Colombian cement is unknown. In order to evaluate the hydration characteristics of Nopal, several Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) were performed to evaluate the optimal temperature of dehydration. Initially, the results show that around 175°C the weight loss is approximately 95%, this mass loss corresponds to the process of physical removal, suggesting that at least a remaining amount of 5% (w/w) has the ability to retain large amounts of water which is stored in the micro-structural deposits of Nopal. The evaluation by means Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), confirm that the whole cactus structure enables the water storage at cellular level. The results of infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis allowed the qualitative and semi-quantitative evaluation of the presence of functional groups and elemental chemical composition of Nopal respectively, mainly related with polysaccharide functional groups, which corresponds to 85% of the total composition. Other functional groups, are related with protein and mineral components. This found characteristics are relevant for the water retention in process that require the decrease of water consumption and the reinforcing of mechanical properties and durability, due to ability of Nopal mucilage to restore its hydration characteristics.

Influences of alternate partial root-zone irrigation and urea rate on water- and nitrogen-use efficiencies in tomato

Traditional water and fertilizer inputs are often much higher than the actual demands of tomato, which causes a reduction in water- and fertilizer-use efficiencies. To investigate the advantage of alternate partial root-zone irrigation (AI) on water- and nitrogen (N)-use efficiencies of tomato modified by water and N management, taking conventional irrigation (CI) as the control, the effects of AI on root morphology and activity, fruit yield and water and N use efficiency were studied using pot experiments. There were four combinations of irrigation levels and growing stages of tomato for AI, i.e. AI1 (high water (WH) from blooming to harvest stage (BHS)), AI2 (WH from blooming to fruit setting stage (BFS) and low water (WL) at the harvest stage (HS)), AI3 (WL at BFS and WH at HS) and AI4 (WL at BHS) at three urea rates, i.e. low urea rate (NL), middle urea rate (NM) and high urea rate (NH) in the form of urea. Irrigation quotas for WH and WL in AI at BFS or HS were 80% and 60% of that in CI, respectively. Compared to CI, AI decreased water consumption by 16.0%-33.1% and increased water use efficiency of yield (WUEy) and dry mass (WUEd) by 6.7%-11.9% and 10.2%-15.9%, respectively. AI1 did not decline yield, total N uptake (TNU) and N use efficiency (NUE) significantly. Compared to NL, NM enhanced tomato yield, TNU, WUEy and WUEd by 28.5%, 35.3%, 22.6% and 16.3%, respectively. Compared to CINL, AI1NM reduced water consumption by 12.5%, but increased tomato yield, TNU, WUEy and WUEd by 35.5%, 58.4%, 54.4% and 53.7%, respectively. Therefore, AI1 can improve water use efficiency and total N uptake of tomato simultaneously at medium urea rate. Keywords: alternate partial root-zone irrigation, nitrogen level, nitrogen uptake, tomato, water use efficiency, yield DOI: 10.25165/j.ijabe.20171006.2541 Citation: Liu X G, Li F S, Zhang F C, Cai H J, Yang Q L. Influences of alternate partial root-zone irrigation and urea rates on water- and nitrogen-use efficiencies in tomato. Int J Agric & Biol Eng, 2017; 10(6): 94–102.

Impacts on Rural Wastewater Systems in Subarctic Regions due to Changes in Inputs from Households

The use of water-saving appliances and heat exchangers is becoming increasingly popular to decrease water consumption and recover energy from preheated water. However, such in-household changes can ...

Effects of different irrigation practices using treated wastewater on tomato yields, quality, water productivity, and soil and fruit mineral contents

Wastewater use in agricultural irrigation is becoming a common practice in order to meet the rising water demands in arid and semi-arid regions. The study was conducted to determine the effects of the full (FI), deficit (DI), and partial root-zone drying (PRD) irrigation practices using treated municipal wastewater (TWW) and freshwater (FW) on tomato yield, water use, fruit quality, and soil and fruit heavy metal concentrations. The TWW significantly increased marketable yield compared to the FW, as well as decreased water consumption. Therefore, water use efficiency (WUE) in the TWW was significantly higher than in the FW. Although the DI and the PRD practices caused less yields, these practices significantly increased WUE values due to less irrigation water applied. The water-yield linear relationships were statistically significant. TWW significantly increased titratable acidity and vitamin C contents. Reduced irrigation provided significantly lower titratable acidity, vitamin C, and lycopene contents. TWW increased the surface soil and fruit mineral contents in response to FW. Greater increases were observed under FI, and mineral contents declined with reduction in irrigation water. Heavy metal accumulation in soils was within safe limits. However, Cd and Pb contents in fruits exceeded standard limits given by FAO/WHO. Higher metal pollution index values determined for fruits also indicated that TWW application, especially under FI, might cause health risks in long term.

Retrofit of a wet cooling tower in order to reduce water and fan power consumption using a wet/dry approach

A Parallel Path Wet/Dry configuration and a high-precision airflow regulation method are implemented in order to retrofit an existing wet cooling tower. The modifications are intended to reduce water requirements and fan power consumption of a 12-cell wet tower. The proposed method of airflow control takes advantage of fans with variable frequency drive to regulate airflow with high accuracy. A number of simulations are carried out to predict different operating factors of the wet and hybrid towers. Experimentally obtained values of water consumption demonstrate the validity of those obtained using the computer simulations. According to the results, the accurate airflow control prevents sudden fluctuations in requisite fan power and water consumption rate and causes up to 64.6% decrease in fan power consumption. The results reveal that using the proposed wet/dry approach results in an average 9.4% decrease in water consumption. Given the relatively low degree of modifications made to the original wet tower and preserving the condenser operating condition, the accomplished amount of water conservation is satisfactory.

Analysis of Water Tariff Reform on Water Consumption in Different Housing Typologies in Calvià (Mallorca)

This study analyses water prices and residential water consumption using micro data for three different housing typologies in Calvia with contrasting household characteristics. We examine the effect of a price reform of the sanitation fee (implemented in 2013) on the average prices and their water consumption in each of the areas. Our results conclude that the aggregate water consumption decreased only during the year of the reform, but increased the following year. The increase in the amount of water consumed by the houses of higher standards of living was greater than the small decrease in water consumption by families with medium and low-medium incomes. Thus, the reform had a very modest effect as regards reducing water consumption, and many households increased their consumption despite the higher prices. From a water policy perspective, we recommend a water tariff scheme differentiated according to the housing characteristics in order to find the most effective and fairest way to save water.

Endophytic microorganisms of tropical tuber crops: Potential and perspectives

Endophytic microorganisms which include both bacteria and fungi colonise almost every plant species. In order to colonize the plant and compete with other microorganisms, they produce a plethora of secondary metabolites, including toxins, enzymes, antibiotics, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and antifungal compounds. Endophytic fungi can have profound impacts on plant communities which include abiotic and biotic stress tolerance, increase of biomass, decrease of water consumption and alteration of resource allocation, nitrogen fixation, increased drought resistance, thermal protection, survival under osmotic stress and degradation of pollutants. Though tuber crops are the second most important group of crop plants providing food energy to humans after cereals, less attention has been paid to the these traditional crops in general. Investigations regarding the association of endophytes with the tuber crops have been sparsely studied though in some tuber crops like cassava, sweet potato and yams, presence of endophytes have been reported. Hence from the scarcely available literature, in the current review an attempt was made to put light on the various beneficial activities of endophytes on tuber crops. These reports glorified many symbiotically associated endophytes to have antagonistic properties against many plant pathogens like Rhizoctoniasolani, Pythiumaphanidermatumand Sclerotiumrolfsii. Species like Rahnellawas resilient to cold shock, UV irradiation and antibiotics. Many diazotropihic and non-diazotropihicendophytic bacteria were involved in nitrogen fixation. Actinomycetesendophytes were novel sources of industrially important thermostableamylolytic enzymes. However, inspite of all these profound beneficial effects endophytic associations are still to be studied in many tuber crops like taro, elephant foot yam, greater yam etc. So this review put forward the urge to carry out comprehensive research on these important microbes on such important crops.

Dynamics of Domestic Water Consumption in the Urban Area of the Kathmandu Valley: Situation Analysis Pre and Post 2015 Gorkha Earthquake

Information regarding domestic water consumption is vital, as the Kathmandu Valley will soon be implementing the Melamchi Water Supply Project; however, updated information on the current situation after the 2015 Gorkha Earthquake (GEQ) is still lacking. We investigated the dynamics of domestic water consumption pre- and post-GEQ. The piped water supply was short, and consumption varied widely across the Kathmandu Upatyaka Khanepani Limited (KUKL) branches and altitude. The reduction in piped, ground, and jar water consumption and the increase in tanker water consumption post-GEQ appeared to be due to the impact of the GEQ. However, the impact did not appear to be prominent on per capita water consumption, although it was reduced from 117 to 99 L post-GEQ. Piped, ground, and tanker water use were associated with an increase and jar water use was associated with a decrease in water consumption. Despite improvements in quantity, inequality in water consumption and inequity in affordability across wealth status was well established. This study suggests to KUKL the areas of priority where improvements to supply are required, and recommends an emphasis on resuming performance. Policy planners should consider the existing inequity in affordability, which is a major issue in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Evaluation of a modified method to measure total starch in animal feeds

The AOAC method 996.11 (AOAC, 2005) has been recognized as an accurate, repeatable, and efficient method to measure total starch in animal feeds. However, analyzing starch using the AOAC method can be expensive and associated with technical challenges. The objectives of this study were to determine if an alternative modified starch method (MAOAC) could be more economical and minimize technical challenges associated with the AOAC method. Modification of the AOAC method, 996.11 (AOAC, 2005) was done by combining the AOAC method with the acetate buffer method of Hall (2009) and introducing alpha-amylase (1162liquefon units/assay) and amyloglucosidase (400units/assay) from different sources (ANKOM Technology Inc., Macedon, NY and Sigma–Aldrich Inc., St. Louis, MO). Dried rumen and fecal samples, alfalfa hay, dried distillers grains with solubles, corn silage, total mixed ration (TMR), concentrate mixture, ground corn, and pure corn starch were analyzed using the AOAC and MAOAC methods. Two technicians performed two runs of each method and all samples were analyzed in duplicate within each run. The average starch concentration for 9 samples was not affected by method (AOAC method=298.7±1.84; MAOAC=298.0±1.39g/kg; P=0.49), technician (technician I=297.8±12.8g/kg; technician II=299.0±19.6g/kg; P=0.24), or run (run I=298.4±15.3g/kg; run II=298.1±17.0g/kg; P=0.59). The average time spent to analyze 18 assays was approximately 3h for both methods. Average chemical cost per assay with the MAOAC method was $0.88 compared with $3.41 for the AOAC method. There was a 79% decrease in water consumption for the samples containing >100g/kg starch with the MAOAC method compared with the AOAC method. The MAOAC starch assay could be considered a cost-effective, more environmentally friendly, and less technically difficult method compared with the AOAC starch method.

A Hybrid Fuzzy-Based Multi-Objective PSO Algorithm for Conjunctive Water Use and Optimal Multi-Crop Pattern Planning

This paper focuses on extracting an optimal multi-crop pattern plan through multi-objective conjunctive surface-ground water use management. Minimizing shortages in meeting irrigation demands, maximizing groundwater resources sustainability and maximizing agricultural net benefits are the three main goals of the multi-objective optimization problem solved in this paper. A new robust fuzzy-based multi-objective PSO algorithm called f-MOPSO is adopted and modified to solve a three-objective real-world conjunctive use management problem presented in this paper after testing on standard test problems revealed f-MOPSO superiority as compared to the well-known multi-swarm vector evaluated PSO (VEPSO) algorithm. The f-MOPSO benefits from a well-organized Sugeno fuzzy inference system (SFIS) designed for handling multi-objective nature of the optimization problems. The unique performance of f-MOPSO is not only presenting the better final solutions, but also aggregating the capabilities for measurement of dominance and diversity of the solutions in one stage by one index named comprehensive dominance index, in contrast to a wide range of multi-objective algorithms that evaluate dominance and diversity in two separate stages resulting in excessive computational burden. The optimization model is carried out on a 10-year long-term simulation period, resulting in increasing irrigation efficiency i.e. decreasing water losses, decreasing water consumption per unit cultivated area and increasing water productivity compared to those similar criteria observed in actual operation in the study area. The wheat and rice crops were identified as the dominant crops, while the optimization model was the least interested to onion cultivation, assigning the least average cultivation area to this crop over the whole planning period.

Suvremena vodoopskrba riječkog područja

The area of Rijeka's water supply system belongs to karst which is featured with a significant underground water circulation, as well as with a high sensitivity to external influences such as water pollution. Abundant springs are the basis of water supply. The minimal spring abundance exceeds the water consumption for several times. The quality of water is good, supplying more than 200.000 residents of the Rijeka area, and since lately the northern part of Krk Island. The article studies the development of Rijeka's water supply system, with an emphasis on the water consumption and the level of water supply system's development in the last fifteen years. The data shows a high level of development of the water supply system. Lately there has been a decrease in water consumption in the researched area, particularly in economic sector due to many industries being shut down. Today approximately 2/3 of consumption accounts for households. In spite of redistribution of population within the researched area (the process of suburbanization) there was no significant decrease in water supply standard. Moreover, lately there have been considerable advances in reducing the losses in the water supply network.

Monitoring of water supply connections as an element to reduce apparent losses of water?

Measuring instruments are designed to measure a given physical value, to process the obtained information and forward it to the observer. They are designed to perform specific tasks in specific working conditions and meeting the envisaged requirements. The most important requirement to be met by measuring instruments, is to preserve the established metrological characteristics. The basic and most common instrument for measuring the volume of flowing water is the water meter. Selecting the right water meter in the operating conditions is not an easy issue. The problem has been further intensified by decrease of water consumption which began in the 90s of the twentieth century and continuing to the present day. As a result, there has changed the structure of water consumption in both the residential and industrial applications. In this situation, a right selection of the optimal water meter it is an important case. The article presents the results of research in the field of characteristic flows in the water supply connections in multi-family housing using modern monitoring systems. It has been presented the calculated inequality ratio of water consumption, which can be helpful when designing a plumbing systems. In addition, the structure of water consumption due to the typical flow ranges was determined.

Epidemiology of Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) among Hospitalized and Outpatients Frequent to Al-Lieth Kidney Unit (AKU)

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a syndrome characterized by decreased glomerular filtration. The spectrum of AKI ranges from minimal elevations in serum creatinine (SCr) to complete anuric kidney failure. Despite ample knowledge of the biologic basis of AKI, descriptions of the incidence, risk factors, sequelae, and outcomes of AKI remain relatively limited or have been based upon older descriptions without reflecting the most current definitions or practice patterns. Aim of the study: Our study aims to assess the epidemiology of AKI among Saudi Patients attending to Al- Lieth Kidney Unit (AKU) that will contribute to define incidence and prevalence of the disease in Al-Lieth specific area via a structured Questionnaire that includes demographical data, medical information and measured diagnostic tests. Materials and methods: The study was carried out on fifty patients in Al-Lieth Kidney Unit (AKU) compared with twenty five healthy control volunteers of matched age and sex. They were classified in accordance with KDIGO criteria. Results: The mean age of patients in the AKI group was 53.44 ± 6.98 years while in control group was 51.08 ± 6.89 years, there was a significant increase in age in AKI group more than in the control group. eGFR was significantly decreased in AKI group than the control group. The most significant risk factors if present together in same person may lead to AKI disease, the risk factors were age, female sex, decreased eGFR, and decreased water consumption per day, diabetes mellitus and increase serum creatinine.

A novel GLP-1 analog, a dimer of GLP-1 via covalent linkage by a lysine, prolongs the action of GLP-1 in the treatment of type 2 diabetes

GLP-1 is an incretin hormone that can effectively lower blood glucose, however, the short time of biological activity and the side effect limit its therapeutic application. Many methods have been tried to optimize GLP-1 to extend its in vivo half-time, reduce its side effect and enhance its activity. Here we have chosen the idea to dimerize GLP-1 with a C-terminal lysine to form a new GLP-1 analog, DLG3312. We have explored the structure and the biological property of DLG3312, and the results indicated that DLG3312 not only remained the ability to activate the GLP-1R, but also strongly stimulated Min6 cell to secrete insulin. The in vivo bioactivities have been tested on two kinds of animal models, the STZ induced T2DM mice and the db/db mice, respectively. DLG3312 showed potent anti-diabetic ability in glucose tolerance assay and single-dose administration of DLG3312 could lower blood glucose for at least 10 hours. Long-term treatment with DLG3312 can reduce fasted blood glucose, decrease water consumption and food intake and significantly reduce the HbA1c level by 1.80% and 2.37% on STZ induced T2DM mice and the db/db mice, respectively. We also compared DLG3312 with liraglutide to investigate its integrated control of the type 2 diabetes. The results indicated that DLG3312 almost has the same effect as liraglutide but with a much simpler preparation process. In conclusion, we, by using C-terminal lysine as a linker, have synthesized a novel GLP-1 analog, DLG3312. With simplified preparation and improved physiological characterizations, DLG3312 could be considered as a promising candidate for the type 2 diabetes therapy.

Assessment of the Reliability-Cost Efficiency of the Pumping Subsystems at Water Treatment Plant

Abstract In last years all countries of the European Union experience decrease of water consumption. What is worse, in most cases large European water treatment plants (WTP) have been design and built decades ago, when water consumption was much higher than nowadays. It is a challenging task to adjust WTP’s capacity to the current water demand as it is associated with costs and safety issues. Minding that fact, authors decided to propose an new authorial methodology of combined reliability-cost efficiency assessment for water supply system with exceeded redundant capacity, based on new index - unit indicator of reliability-cost efficiency. It included both reliability and costs aspects. It was decided to present the new method on example of the pumping subsystems working for WTP in Poland. The research was based on Activity-Based Life Cycle Costs (AB-LCC) methodology together with two-parametric reliability evaluation. Using real operational and financial data an application of proposed authorial reliability-cost indicator was presented. The reliability-cost efficiency assessment allowed to present how operation of each pumping subsystem influenced global operational costs of WTP. This information is essential for decision-making process for rational management of technical facilities.

Wetting properties and performance test of modified rigid collector in wet electrostatic precipitators

ABSTRACTThe fine particles are considered a significant pollution problem. The wet electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) have advantages of efficient collection of the fine particles with lower pressure drop and eliminating reentrainment. The wetting properties of the collector surfaces have significantly important effect on wet ESPs’ stable and secure operation. The modified rigid collector (MRC) was modified by coating specific vinyl ester resin composites and loose glass fiber cloth over the conventional carbon steel in a certain way. The rigid collector surfaces before and after modification had been characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and interface tensiometer. The effect of operating temperatures on the wetting properties of the rigid collector surfaces before and after modification was investigated. The temperature range was 40~90 °C, and the wetting properties contained liquid holdup, surface flow rate, film rate, average film thickness, and critical saturation time. The modified rigid collector surface exhibited excellent wetting properties at the operating temperatures. The fine particles collection performance compared among the MRC, the conventional rigid collector (CRC), and the flexible collector (FC) in the wet ESPs was investigated. The effects of the applied voltage, the water film, corona power, and the specific collecting area on the fine particles collection were evaluated. The modified rigid collector provided high fine particles collection effect with lower energy and water consumption.Implications: To improve the submicron particles collection efficiency and decrease energy and water consumption, the formation of uniform water film over the collector surfaces has been widely studied. The modified rigid collector was modified by coating specific vinyl ester resin composites and loose glass fiber cloth (ERGF) over the conventional carbon steel (CCS) in a certain way. The modified rigid collector surface exhibited excellent wetting properties. The wet ESPs by the modified rigid collector exhibited significantly higher particles collection efficiency than by the conventional rigid collector.

Consideration of Water Uses for Its Sustainable Management, the Case of Issyk-Kul Lake, Kyrgyzstan

Water is an essential element for life, and development would not be possible without its availability. This study identified the main water consumers and their likely impact on water lake level for the case of Issyk-Kul Lake Basin, Kyrgyzstan. Data on precipitation, lake level, irrigation, household and industrial water consumption from 1980 to 2014 were provided by the Department of Water Resources and Irrigation, Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation of the Kyrgyz Republic. The input data was analyzed with OriginPro 8.5 for Statistical Analysis. The results indicated a decreasing irrigation water consumption from 2029.42 to 461.76 million·m3 in 1980 and 2014, respectively. Likewise, households consumed 27.02 million·m3 in 1980 falling to 16.55 million·m3 in 2014, similar to the manufacture’s water consumption. However, it was noted that agriculture is a high water consumer, whose water demand for irrigation rises from April to August, the period during which the precipitation also increases. Nevertheless, manufactures and household water consumption do not have timed limits of use like in agriculture, which in turn affects the lake water level. Therefore, as the rainfall increases by April to August, we suggest to harvest and only use the rainfall water during its abundance period. This would help in restoring the lake’s water level during the time of rainwater uses, and leads to water consumption balance, flood management and lake biodiversity conservation as well.

Combined ethanol and methane production from switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) impregnated with lime prior to steam explosion

Pretreatments are crucial to achieve efficient conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to soluble sugars. In this light, switchgrass was subjected to 13 pretreatments including steam explosion alone (195 °C for 5, 10 and 15 min) and after impregnation with the following catalysts: Ca(OH)2 at low (0.4%) and high (0.7%) concentration; Ca(OH)2 at high concentration and higher temperature (205 °C for 5, 10 and 15 min); H2SO4 (0.2% at 195 °C for 10 min) as reference acid catalyst before steam explosion. Enzymatic hydrolysis was carried out to assess pretreatment efficiency in both solid and liquid fraction. Thereafter, in selected pretreatments the solid fraction was subjected to simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF), while the liquid fraction underwent anaerobic digestion (AD). Lignin removal was lowest (12%) and highest (35%) with steam alone and 0.7% lime, respectively. In general, higher cellulose degradation and lower hemicellulose hydrolysis were observed in this study compared to others, depending on lower biomass hydration during steam explosion. Mild lime addition (0.4% at 195 °C) enhanced ethanol in SSF (+28% than steam alone), while H2SO4 boosted methane in AD (+110%). However, methane represented a lesser component in combined energy yield (ethanol, methane and energy content of residual solid). Mild lime addition was also shown less aggressive and secured more residual solid after SSF, resulting in higher energy yield per unit raw biomass. Decreased water consumption, avoidance of toxic compounds in downstream effluents, and post process recovery of Ca(OH)2 as CaCO3 represent further advantages of pretreatments involving mild lime addition before steam explosion.

Prediction of Acid Dew Point in Flue Gas of Boilers Burning Fossil Fuels

The temperature of flue gas should be controlled to be higher than the acid dew point to avoid fouling and corrosion of heating surfaces in the second pass of boilers. Decreasing the temperature of flue gas in boilers is one of the most effective ways to improve thermal efficiency, enhance electrostatic precipitator efficiency, and decrease water consumption of the desulfurization tower. Accurate knowledge in predicting acid dew point is required. Thus, based on previous research achievements, a measuring device is designed based on the principle of conductive dew point meter, and the acid dew points under different flue gas conditions are measured in this work. An improved thermodynamic correlation formula between the acid dew point and its influencing factors is also derived based on previous research achievements. Then, a semiempirical prediction model that considers the functions of H2SO4 and H2O is proposed. The proposed prediction model is validated by field test data, experimental data, and predict...

Disinfection with neutral electrolyzed oxidizing water to reduce microbial load and to prevent biofilm regrowth in the processing of fresh-cut vegetables

Product decontamination is one of the most important processes of the hygienic practice in food industries such as Minimally Processed Vegetables (MPV) plants and sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) solutions are commonly used as a biocide for disinfection. Although it may be corrosive and irritating when compared to alternative biocides, this biocide is frequently applied at high concentrations. This work aims at studying the use of lower concentrations of chlorine by testing neutral electrolyzed oxidizing water (NEOW) as a chlorine-source disinfectant in fresh-cut salad processing. Assays were performed at industrial and laboratory scale. Results showed that lower doses of chlorine from NEOW (30ppm) are as effective as higher concentrations of the traditional chlorine from NaOCl (80ppm) in the reduction of total microbial population at industrial scale. Moreover, in laboratory studies, the NEOW chlorine was also more effective in biofilm eradication, as well as a biofilm preventive agent. NEOW can thus be a successful alternative water disinfection technique, reducing the free chlorine concentration needed to sanitize salads, also decreasing water consumption whilst taking into account environmental and food quality impacts.