Gravity Filtration Research Articles

Effect of operating parameters on the sludge settling characteristics by treatment of the textile dyeing effluent using electrocoagulation

Abstract This study invested the impact of the operational parameters (pH, Current Density (CD) and Electrode Gap (EG)) on the sludge generated after electrocoagulation treatment of textile dyeing effluent (TDE) by studying sludge settleability and filterability characteristics of EC generated sludge. Electrocoagulation treatment evaluated at laboratory scale with aluminum as electrode material at operating condition of parameters of pH, CD and EG. (pH-5.5, CD-105.12 A/m2 and EG-2.5 cm). Under these operating conditions, maximum COD reduction was achieved 88.45 % and maximum color reduction was about 66.92 %. Settling characteristics of TDE was studied by sludge volume index (SVI) and Centrifugal settleability index (CSI). From disposal point of view, filterability characteristic was also studied by simple gravity filtration method. Specific cake resistance, α (m/kg), filter medium resistance, R m(m−1) was also studied. The specific cake resistance was found in the order of 38.4 × 1013 >34.13 × 1013 >22.25 × 1013 >11.19 × 1013 >7.30 × 1013 (m/kg) at the pH 9.5, 7.5, 1.5, 5.5 and 3.5 respectively. While filter medium resistance was found to be 111.22 × 109, 92.28 × 109, 82.33 × 109, 41.38 × 109 and 13.87 × 109 m−1 at pH 7.5, 9.5, 3.5, 5.5 and 1.5 respectively.

Endoplasmin Is a Hypoxia-Inducible Endoplasmic Reticulum-Derived Cargo of Extracellular Vesicles Released by Cardiac Cell Lines.

Cardiomyopathies are leading causes of human mortality. Recent data indicate that the cardiomyocyte-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs) released upon cardiac injury are present in circulation. This paper aimed to analyze EVs released under normal and hypoxic conditions by H9c2 (rat), AC16 (human) and HL1 (mouse) cardiac cell lines. Small (sEVs), medium (mEVs) and large EVs (lEVs) were separated from a conditioned medium by a combination of gravity filtration, differential centrifugation and tangential flow filtration. The EVs were characterized by microBCA, SPV lipid assay, nanoparticle tracking analysis, transmission and immunogold electron microscopy, flow cytometry and Western blotting. Proteomic profiles of the EVs were determined. Surprisingly, an endoplasmic reticulum chaperone, endoplasmin (ENPL, grp94 or gp96), was identified in the EV samples, and its association with EVs was validated. The secretion and uptake of ENPL was followed by confocal microscopy using GFP-ENPL fusion protein expressing HL1 cells. We identified ENPL as an internal cargo of cardiomyocyte-derived mEVs and sEVs. Based on our proteomic analysis, its presence in EVs was linked to hypoxia in HL1 and H9c2 cells, and we hypothesize that EV-associated ENPL may have a cardioprotective role by reducing cardiomyocyte ER stress.

The blending effect of natural polysaccharides with nano-zirconia towards the removal of fluoride and arsenate from water.

Nano-zirconia (ZO) was synthesized using a microwave-assisted one-pot precipitation route. Two biopolymers, chitosan (CTS) and carboxymethyl cellulose were blended with ZO at different w/w ratios. The formulation with 30% w/w chitosan (ZO-CTS) was found to give enhanced uptake of F- and As(V). ZO and the most effective ZO-CTS system were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These confirmed the formation of a composite system containing nanoparticles of 50 nm in size, in which ZO was present in the amorphous form. It was observed that the combination of ZO with CTS improved the F- and As(V) adsorption capacity most notably at pH 5.5. Fluoride adsorption by ZO-CTS followed the Freundlich isotherm model, with an adsorption capacity of 120 mg g-1. Adsorption of As(V) by ZO-CTS could be fitted with both the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models and was found to have a capacity of 14.8 mg g-1. Gravity filtration studies conducted for groundwater levels indicated the effectiveness of ZO-CTS in adsorbing As(V) and F- at a pH of 5.5. The ability of the ZO-CTS in removing Cd(II) and Pb(II) was also investigated, and no such enhancement was observed, and found the neat ZO was the most potent sorbent here.

First X-ray Crystal Structure Characterization, Computational Studies, and Improved Synthetic Route to the Bioactive 5-Arylimino-1,3,4-thiadiazole Derivatives.

N-arylcyanothioformamides are useful coupling components for building key chemical intermediates and biologically active molecules in an expedited and efficient manner. Similarly, substituted (Z)-2-oxo-N-phenylpropanehydrazonoyl chlorides have been utilized in numerous one-step heteroannulation reactions to assemble the structural core of several different types of heterocyclic compounds. Herein, we demonstrate the effectiveness of the reaction of N-arylcyanothioformamides with various substituted (Z)-2-oxo-N-phenylpropanehydrazonoyl chlorides to produce, stereoselectively and regioselectively, a range of 5-arylimino-1,3,4-thiadiazole derivatives decorated with a multitude of functional groups on both aromatic rings. The synthetic methodology features mild room-temperature conditions, large substrate scope, wide array of functional groups on both reactants, and good to high reaction yields. The products were isolated by gravity filtration in all cases and structures were confirmed by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy and high accuracy mass spectral analysis. Proof of molecular structure of the isolated 5-arylimino-1,3,4-thiadiazole regioisomer was obtained for the first time by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Crystal-structure determination was carried out on (Z)-1-(5-((3-fluorophenyl)imino)-4-(4-iodophenyl)-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)ethan-1-one and (Z)-1-(4-phenyl-5-(p-tolylimino)-4,5-dihydro-1,3,4-thiadiazol-2-yl)ethan-1-one. Similarly, the tautomeric structures of the N-arylcyanothioformamides and (Z)-geometries of the 2-oxo-N-phenylpropanehydrazonoyl chloride coupling partners were proven by X-ray diffraction studies. As representative examples, crystal-structure determination was carried out on (4-ethoxyphenyl)carbamothioyl cyanide and (Z)-N-(2,3-difluorophenyl)-2-oxopropanehydrazonoyl chloride. Density functional theory calculations at the B3LYP-D4/def2-TZVP level were carried out to rationalize the observed experimental findings.

Analysis and Interpretation of the gravity data to delineate subsurface structural geometry of the Olkaria geothermal reservoir, Kenya

In this study, about 255 gravity data stations collected between September to November 2021 were used to generate a Bouguer anomaly map, edge detection filters, and 3D inversion using an estimated Bouguer density of 2.47 g/cm3, an average of the density estimates methods of G-H, F-H, and CVUR. The edge detection filters show the field is structurally fractured, with the faults trending in the NNE-SSW, N-S, NE-SW, NW-SE, and some in the E-W direction. It is more likely that the subsurface structure in the area is affected by complex sets of faults within the field. Some new geological contact zones and their possible orientations were determined using HD and INH filter methods. 3-D gravity inversion constrained by geological data and previous geophysical data reveals a high-density anomalous body in the reservoir region (∼2.2–3 km) of an estimated average volume of about 130.6km3 with some low dense bodies extending to reservoir zone from near surface observed as the faults, dipping nearly 90° at the reservoir. Thus, the structural geometry and the subsurface fault orientation matrix, varying in dimension and depth, were delineated as characterized by reservoir dimension and depth. The first inversion of gravity modeling constrained by wells data, past geological and other geophysical findings to image the Olkaria geothermal reservoir system was presented. The gravity analysis methods applied entail a rich interpretation and understanding of the density dynamics of the Olkaria subsurface structural orientation subjected to reservoir characterization, revealing a unique conical-shaped low dense anomalous body extending increasingly with depth in the Olkaria Domes field around wells OW-903, 904, 905, and OW-921 trending northeastwards, which may be a highly fractured zone filled with fluid. The applied gravity filter and inversion methods portray detailed dynamical changes in the Olkaria subsurface density structures, revealing the characterization of the reservoir.

Feasibility of rapid gravity filtration and membrane ultrafiltration for the removal of microplastics and microlitter in sewage and wastewater from plastic industry

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) act as barriers in reducing uncontrolled microplastic and microlitter (MP-ML) emissions from both urban and industrial wastewaters. Despite removing most of the MP-ML, large quantities of this waste still enter the environment through WWTP effluents, which means further post-treatment technologies are needed. This study contains a technical evaluation of MP-ML removal from urban wastewater (UWW) and from the wastewater from the recycling plastic industry (PIWW) using two different pilot-scale post-treatment systems: rapid gravity filtration (RGF) and ultrafiltration (UF) membranes. The MP-ML mass concentrations contained in UWW and PIWW were measured by a simplified method adapted for the long-term monitoring of WWTP operations. The method was validated on standard samples. Despite the RGF system consumed less energy than UF treating UWW (0.097 kWh·m−3 and 0.156 kWh·m−3, respectively), RGF was not efficient enough to properly decrease the risk of MP-ML emissions (39.5 ± 34.6 % of MP-ML removal). With respect to PIWW, the energy consumption of the UF plant decreased up to 0.059 kWh·m−3. The combination of RGF and UF technologies was expected to reduce membrane fouling but it did not show significant differences in the mid-term operation.

Geophysical assessment for deep structuring mapping and water resources perspectivity in semi-arid land region (northeastern Tunisia, Mediterranean Basin)

In Mediterranean semi-arid regions, shallow aquifers are generally over-exploited. However, several deeper groundwater boreholes exhibit serious problems of low hydraulic yield and dry wells. The existence of reliable information about the regional geological structure can enhance the success of deep well programmes. Geophysics has proved very useful as a fast and efficient tool to understand the structuring of deep hydrogeology aquifers. Indeed, the identification and characterization of the deep structures of the Bir Drassen–Sidi Toumi region (Cap-Bon, northeastern Tunisia) contribute to a better quantification of the groundwater potential, allowing more sustainable management. This province can be considered as the SW extension of the NE–SW Jebel Abderrahman Atlasic anticline, one of the most prominent geological structures in northeastern Tunisia. To identify the Miocene and Oligocene reservoirs, a geophysical study was carried out using advanced gravity analysis, supported by boreholes, and seismic and geoelectrical calibration. Different gravity filters were applied to reveal the sub-basin architecture and faulting network in the region. By calculating the maxima of the total horizontal gravity derivative and the distribution solutions for Euler's equations, a set of deep faults of different directions was divulged. Time-domain electromagnetic mapping illustrated the influence of these fault zones on the regional arrangement of sub-basin aquifers and their recharge processes. Finally, a 3D residual gravity inversion was carried out to better image the tectonically controlled depocentres associated with prolific thick fluvial–deltaic reservoirs. These ‘deep aquifer valley’ can be suggested as strategic targets for deep hydrogeological exploration planning.

Biomarkers of sickle cell nephropathy in Senegal.

Sickle cell anemia (SCA) is caused by a single point variation in the β-globin gene (HBB): c.20A> T (p.Glu7Val), in homozygous state. SCA is characterized by sickling of red blood cells in small blood vessels which leads to a range of multiorgan complications, including kidney dysfunction. This case-control study aims at identifying sickle cell nephropathy biomarkers in a group of patients living with SCA from Senegal. A total of 163 patients living with SCA and 177 ethnic matched controls were investigated. Biological phenotyping included evaluation of glycemia, glucosuria, albuminuria, proteinuria, tubular proteinuria, serum creatinine, urine creatinine, urine specific gravity and glomerular filtration rate. Descriptive statistics of biomarkers were performed using the χ2 -test, with the significance level set at p<0.05. Patients living with SCA had a median age of 20 years (range 4 to 57) with a female sex frequency of 53.21%. The median age of the control participants was 29 years (range: 4-77) with a female sex frequency of 66.09%. The following proportions of abnormal biological indices were observed in SCA patients versus (vs.) controls, as follows: hyposthenuria: 35.3%vs.5.2% (p<0.001); glomerular hyperfiltration: 47.66%vs.19.75% (p<0.001), renal insufficiency: 5.47%vs.3.82% (p = 0.182); microalbuminuria: 42.38%vs.5.78% (p<0.001); proteinuria: 39.33%vs.4.62% (p<0.001); tubular proteinuria: 40.97%vs.4.73% (p<0.001) and microglucosuria: 22.5%vs.5.1% (p<0.001). This study shows a relatively high proportion of SCA nephropathy among patients living with SCA in Senegal. Microglucosuria, proteinuria, tubular proteinuria, microalbuminuria, hyposthenuria and glomerular hyperfiltration are the most prevalent biomarkers of nephropathy in this group of Senegalese patients with SCA.

Recycling of used vegetable oils by powder adsorption.

The treatment of used vegetable oil (UVO) with seven different adsorbents and through two different procedures (stirring and gravity filtration) was explored. Important differences in terms of density, turbidity, electrical resistance, free fatty acids (FFAs) content and relative fatty acid distribution were observed. Different outcomes were shown depending both on the adsorbent and on the procedure. Lower values of density and FFAs were registered for oils treated by gravity filtration with portland (respectively 0.6% and 0.81 g/ml) and celite (respectively 0.7% and 0.72 g/ml). Considering the undesired leaching from the powder to the oil, related to the turbidity, the celite resulted more suitable for the oil recycling (241 Nephelometric Turbidity Unit (NTU) for portland vs 184 NTU for celite). In addition, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy combined with multivariate analysis allowed to determine a chemical fingerprint relative characteristic of vegetable oils recycled by gravity or by adsorption by stirring.

Removing forever chemicals via amphiphilic functionalized membranes

Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl species (PFAS) remain ever-present drinking water contaminants. While some physical adsorption technologies for PFAS removal have been implemented on a large scale, they are limited by high cost and low effectiveness. In this work, an amphiphilic coating was developed and used to functionalize an aluminum oxide hydroxide membrane. Dynamic filtration of challenge water containing eighteen PFAS demonstrated >99% removal of eleven of eighteen PFAS as defined in EPA 537.1. Comparable performance was observed under gravity filtration conditions with >90% removal of fifteen of the eighteen PFAS. A comparison of breakthrough rates using amphiphilic silanes versus granular activated carbon (GAC), the commonly used filtration technology, was performed. Filters with the new amphiphilic coating outperformed GAC under dynamic filtration conditions by more than an order of magnitude for the perfluorooctanoic acid adsorption capacity and even greater for perfluorooctane sulfonic acid. Molecular dynamics simulations were used to compute the free energy, enthalpy, and entropy of interactions between coatings and six PFAS contaminants. Computed interaction free-energy (FE) values agree with experimental filtration performance across contaminants. The ability to use simulated FE values to predict filtration efficiency presents an opportunity for future in-silico rational design with overall reduced cost and development time.

Spiral tube flocculation for drinking water treatment plants

Almost all water treatment plants for either surface raw water or water from reservoirs needs to have some kind of a system to eliminate time required for particles to settle down in the settling tanks (This occurs by increase turbidity particle size). A coagulant to be added and a flocculation’s system to inshore a good and homogenous distribution of chemicals to form up the correct size of particles to settled within the settling tanks. In water treatment plants many types of clary- flocculates are used either the mechanicals paddle or hydraulic jumps of steam water or using the spiral tubes (As on this study). In addition, a Jar Test should be used to assess the suitability of flocculation treatment for a given raw water. Unfortunately, even Jar Test suffers from a number of disadvantages. a number of study for Spiral Flocculate, has been shown I claimed to be a better method for continuous assessment of flocculation. Within multimedia sands and a spiral flocculate’s. Constant flow (generated from a tank with spill way to ensure a constant head all through the test cycles, results are recorded, and a number of remarks and suggestions are produced. This study will make use of a number of laboratory tests on a small model of treatment plants made for this purpose consist mainly of a gravity filter compares the performance of Spiral Flocculate The experiments conducted reveal that the Spiral Flocculate has a better effective energy. Even that this method need more future study and theoretical equations for the developing of chain flocs are needed. However, the size of flocs in Spiral Flocculate seems to be overestimated relative to the real flocculate and coagulations. Purpose: A continuous need for improving water treatment techniques allows for new technologies for obtaining adequate water, both in terms of quality and quantity. In order to obtain an efficient, rapid and low-cost clarification system, this study proposes the use of spired coiled tubes as a coagulation-flocculation reactor to evaluate the proposed clarification system, a number of experimental test where generated and a pumped kaolin with controlled quantities are pumped to city water and used in this study. Water with controlled head is used all the time and records are generated for the evaluation.

Particles act as 'specialty centers' with expanded enzymatic function throughout the water column in the western North Atlantic.

Heterotrophic bacteria initiate the degradation of high molecular weight organic matter by producing an array of extracellular enzymes to hydrolyze complex organic matter into sizes that can be taken up into the cell. These bacterial communities differ spatially and temporally in composition, and potentially also in their enzymatic complements. Previous research has shown that particle-associated bacteria can be considerably more active than bacteria in the surrounding bulk water, but most prior studies of particle-associated bacteria have been focused on the upper ocean - there are few measurements of enzymatic activities of particle-associated bacteria in the mesopelagic and bathypelagic ocean, although the bacterial communities in the deep are dependent upon degradation of particulate organic matter to fuel their metabolism. We used a broad suite of substrates to compare the glucosidase, peptidase, and polysaccharide hydrolase activities of particle-associated and unfiltered seawater microbial communities in epipelagic, mesopelagic, and bathypelagic waters across 11 stations in the western North Atlantic. We concurrently determined bacterial community composition of unfiltered seawater and of samples collected via gravity filtration (>3 μm). Overall, particle-associated bacterial communities showed a broader spectrum of enzyme activities compared with unfiltered seawater communities. These differences in enzymatic activities were greater at offshore than at coastal locations, and increased with increasing depth in the ocean. The greater differences in enzymatic function measured on particles with depth coincided with increasing differences in particle-associated community composition, suggesting that particles act as ‘specialty centers’ that are essential for degradation of organic matter even at bathypelagic depths.

A Practical Peptide Synthesis Workflow Using Amino-Li-Resin.

Herein we report a practical approach for peptide synthesis using second-generation fibrous polyacrylamide resin (Li-resin, “Li” is coming from the name of its inventor, Yongfu Li). This resin with the corresponding handle was used for solid phase peptide synthesis (SPPS) using a fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl (Fmoc) approach. We reveal that the most appropriate mixing and filtration strategy when using amino-Li-resin in SPPS is via shaking and gravity filtration, instead of mechanical stirring and suction filtration used with other resins. The strategy was demonstrated with the SPPS of H-Tyr-Ile-Ile-Phe-Leu-NH2, which contains the difficult sequence Ile-Ile. The peptide was obtained with excellent purity and yield. We are confident that this strategy will be rapidly implemented by other peptide laboratories.

Synthesis of graphene oxide and its application for purification of river water

Graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized through modified hammers’ method. This GO was used for making filter bed. GO based gravity filter was utilized to purify river water. Different parameters of water, such as total dissolved solid (TDS), total suspended solid (TSS), pH, total hardness, dissolve oxygen (DO), iron (Fe) content, arsenic (As) content, and fluoride content were tested. Testing was done before and after filtration of river water. Comparison of each data was done between raw river water and filtered water. Significant quantity of TDS (53.3 %) and TSS (96 %) was removed through filtration. Iron removal efficiency was obtained 70.7 and 84.5 % by without GO and with GO based filter, respectively. Hardness was removed 61.34 % by without GO filter and 86.55 % by with GO filter. The obtained parametric data was also compared with permissible limit of each parameter according to World Health Organization (WHO).

Application of Microgravity Survey in the Exploration of Rare-metal Bearing Pegmatites – A Case Study from Marlagalla, Mandya District, Karnataka

Abstract Geologically, the Marlagalla area represents the southern part of NNE-SSW trending Nagamangala schist belt, which is a member of ancient supracrustals of Sargur Group and situated in the southern part of Western Dharwar Craton. The area is mostly soil cover with limited exposure of amphibolite/hornblende schist and intrusive pegmatite. Pegmatites occur as lensoidal bodies within the amphibolite.Microgravity surveys are attempted for the first time to detect pegmatites within the amphibolite. The density between pegmatite (Density= 2.58-2.61 gm/cc) and host rock amphibolite (Density=3.09-3.14 gm/cc) gives detectable contrast to identify pegmatite within amphibolite. Gravity data are acquired over a grid of 5m x 30m using CG-5 Autograv gravimeter which has 1 μGal sensitivity. Elevation data are acquired using SP80 post processing DGPS instrument which has 5 mm elevation accuracy. Analysis of residual gravity and first vertical derivative (FVD) filters facilitated in delineating the pegmatite bodies. The pegmatite bodies show low gravity anomalies with an amplitude range of -5 to -200 μGal. FVD map of the residual gravity indicated four major N100E trending linear anomalies of -36 to 3.0 μGal/m corresponding to pegmatite bodies of varying strike (100-200m) and width (10-15m).2D-Forward modeling of microgravity data helped in deriving the subsurface geometry of the pegmatites. Borehole drilled subsequently based on the results of microgravity surveys intercepted pegmatites within the amphibolite. Thus, the technique has proved for exploration of pegmatite in contrasting environment of amphibolite. Pegmatite are known for rare metals and lithium minerals. Indirectly the model proposed here will help in exploration of rare metals and Li bearing pegmatite.

Polyaniline and polypyrrole impregnated polyethersulfone based composite polymer beads for defluoridation application

Various composite conductive polymeric beads were prepared by phase inversion method for defluoridation studies. Base polymer (polyether sulfone) was impregnated with doped and undoped polyaniline (dopant: para toluene sulfuric acid). However, highest fluoride uptake capacity of 40 mg/g was observed in case of polypyrrole (dopant: sodium lauryl sulphate) impregnated beads. Morphology of prepared beads revealed their porous characteristics. Apart from this, lauryl sulphate ions in doped polypyrrole chains played an important role in electrostatic adsorption of fluoride ions, as evident from spectral analysis. Optimum equilibrium conditions were obtained at an adsorbent dosage of 10 g/L. Uptake capacity of doped polypyrrole impregnated beads decreased with pH. Fluoride uptake by beads was endothermic and physical in nature. Adsorption kinetics followed pseudo-second order model. Negative effect was shown by carbonate and potassium ions while positive effect was shown by magnesium ions during uptake process. Regeneration was carried for six cycles and it showed a saturated uptake capacity for the last three cycles. Dynamic filtration studies were also carried out using these beads. It was observed that a microcolumn operated in gravity filtration mode can treat 0.05 and 0.03 times of its bed volume at maximum permissible levels of fluoride for distilled and tap water simulated feed solutions, respectively.

Design of Water Supply Scheme for Bisur Village

Abstract: In order to meet the water demand of the continuously growing population of Bisur village and failure of current water supply system it is essential to provide the sufficient and uniform quantity of water through the design of various units of water treatment plant, so for design work we have collected information of proposed area like Main water source, Population, Demand of water, quality of water, distribution network and water tanks etc. from MJP (Maharashtra Jeevan Prabhakaran) and local authorities. After analysed above data we calculated (i) Future population (ii) Water characteristics (iii)Design Period (iv)Water demand [101 LPCD]. After conducting and analysis of survey data we proposed an efficient new alignment for water distribution system and we designed various units of water treatment plant like Aeration, Alum Tank, Tube settler, Rapid Gravity filter, rising main, Jack Well, Sump etc. This proposed design of the water supply scheme for proper supply of water is sufficient to meet the daily requirement of water in selected area. Keywords: RRWS, ESR, Water Demand, MJP, WTP, Population

Comparative Study of Gradient Gravity Method Between Signal Processing and Direct Measurement

The vertical gradient gravity method is one of the developments from the conventional gravity method. The advantage of this method is that it is able to detect the presence of shallow anomalies below the soil surface. In addition, this method is also able to minimize errors resulting from processing and correcting data. This research was conducted by testing the vertical gradient gravity method which is carried out with signal processing or with a vertical gradient gravity filter and the vertical gradient gravity method which is carried out by direct measurement. It was found that the vertical gradient gravity method which was carried out by direct measurements resulted in a clearer pattern in determining the presence of shallow anomaly sources.

Genome Sequence Resource of Sarocladium terricola TR, an Endophytic Fungus as a Potential Biocontrol Agent Against Meloidogyne incognita.

Genome Sequence Resource of Sarocladium terricola TR, an Endophytic Fungus as a Potential Biocontrol Agent Against Meloidogyne incognita.

Exploring the use of flow cytometry for understanding the efficacy of disinfection in chlorine contact tanks

A pilot scale chlorine contact tank (CCT) with flexible baffling was installed at an operational water treatment plant (WTP), taking a direct feed from the outlet of the rapid gravity filters (RGF). For the first time, disinfection efficacy was established by direct microbial monitoring in a continuous reactor using flow cytometry (FCM). Disinfection variables of dose, time, and hydraulic efficiency (short circuiting and dispersion) were explored following characterisation of the reactor's residence time distributions (RTD) by tracer testing. FCM enabled distinction to be made between changes in disinfection reactor design where standard culture-based methods could not. The product of chlorine concentration (C) and residence time (t) correlated well with inactivation of microbes, organisms, with the highest cell reductions (N/N0) reaching <0.025 at Ctx¯ of 20 mg.min/L and above. The influence of reactor geometry on disinfection was best shown from the Ct10. This identified that the initial level of microbial inactivation was higher in unbaffled reactors for low Ct10 values, although the highest levels of inactivation of 0.015 could only be achieved in the baffled reactors, because these conditions enabled the highest Ct10 values to be achieved. Increased levels of disinfection were closely associated with increased formation of the trihalomethane disinfection by-products. The results highlight the importance of well-designed and operated CCT. The improved resolution afforded by FCM provides a tool that can dynamically quantify disinfection processes, enabling options for much better process control.