Professional Documents
Culture Documents
MICHAEL T. MASARIRAMBI
#Corresponding Author: Tel: +268 527 4021/3 Ext 1151; Fax: +268 527 4441.
ABSTRACT
The potential of panel solar cookers in inactivating bacteria in drinking water, using
Escherichia coli (E. coli) as an indicator species, was investigated. Bacterial contaminated
water was collected from Mzimnene River in Manzini region of Swaziland. Water samples
were put in panel solar cookers and exposed to solar radiation for different time intervals
(0, 30, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 minutes). Changes in water temperature and E. coli counts
(cfu/ml) were monitored for each sample. The standard solid plating procedure for
enumerating bacteria was used. The results showed rapid decline in bacteria count when
water temperature reached about 55oC and this was attained within 2 hours of exposure to
solar radiation. The findings suggest that there is potential in using panel solar cookers to
Keywords: Drinking water, Escherichia coli (E. coli), panel solar cooker
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Norman Mhazo is a Lecturer in Sanitation and Waste Management at the University of Swaziland’s
department of Agricultural and Bio-systems Engineering. Nkosingiphile Dlamini is an Agriculture teacher at
Mhlatane High School. Abednego Dlamini is Senior Lecturer in Biochemistry at the University of
Swaziland’s department of Animal Production and Health. Michael Masarirambi is a Lecturer in Fruit and
Vegetable Production at the University of Swaziland’s department of Horticulture.
_________________________________________________________________________
1
Despite the effort made by the government of Swaziland to provide essential services to the
people, a large proportion of the country’s population, especially in the rural areas, still lack
access to clean and safe drinking water. The problem becomes more severe in years of
drought which result in water sources not filling up to adequate capacities. In very dry
years, people resort to fetching water from unprotected wells, rivers and open reservoirs.
For example, in 1997, accessibility to clean water in the country was estimated at 84% in
the urban areas and 33% in rural areas (FAO, 2005). The achievement of the UN
Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, still
remain a pipe dream as around one billion people in the world lack access to safe drinking
Water from unprotected sites is often contaminated with pathogens, like bacteria,
helminths, protozoa and viruses that cause water borne diseases such as diarrhoea,
dysentery, typhoid, and cholera (Metcalf, 1993). These diseases are a major cause of
millions of deaths every year around the world, especially in developing countries (Hrudey
et al., 2006). According to Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ( 2009), the
recent outbreak of cholera reported by health officials in Zimbabwe has claimed 3, 181
lives out of an estimated 61, 304 suspected cases between August , 2008 and January, 2009.
Cases of cholera have been reported in all of Zimbabwe’s provinces and the disease has
since spread to the neighbouring countries of Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and
Zambia. Additional sources have reported cases in Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic
potentially fatal bacterial infection that spread through untreated sewage and contaminated
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drinking water. There is no cholera vaccine available, however, this disease can be
At global level, an estimated five million children under five years of age die each year
because of diarrhoeal diseases related to unsafe water (Metcalf, 1993). In 2004, the United
Nations International Children Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health
Organization (WHO) estimated that about 60% and 23% of families in rural and urban
settlements, respectively; do not have access to safe and clean water for domestic use. This
translated to about 1.1 billion people not having access to microbiologically safe drinking
The primary sources of bacteria, which pose the greatest danger to public health, in
drinking water are human and animal waste. The waste gets into the water supply system
through runoff water from pastures, feedlots and other land areas where animal and human
waste are deposited. Other sources of water contamination are insects, rodents and other
animals that enter into water systems and seepage or discharge from sewage water
treatment plants, latrines and septic tanks. The provision of microbiologically safe water
should therefore be coupled with proper sanitation such as ventilated improved pit latrines.
In Swaziland, the levels of sanitation are low. About 36% of the rural population and about
60 % in urban settlements have sanitary excreta disposal facilities (Busari, 1998). Many
In cases of outbreaks of water-borne diseases, health ministries recommend that people boil
water for up to ten minutes before drinking (Metcalf, 1993). Boiling water requires energy,
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the major sources of which are firewood, coal, paraffin and electricity. These energy
sources are not only scarce but are expensive for an average poor family and also some of
them result in environmental pollution. A great deal of time and effort is required to walk
long distances to fetch firewood, a resource which is rapidly dwindling.The heat and smoke
associated with wood fire also cause discomfort and irritation in the kitchen (Skipton,
1998). Paraffin and electricity costs are rocketing up now and are unlikely to come down
again, except perhaps for temporary short-term fluctuations. Modern water treatment
techniques like chlorination, ozonation, or ultraviolet light systems could be too expensive
for rural communities to acquire and maintain. It is within this challenge that it becomes
imperative to explore alternative sources of energy that complement the conventional ones
While they are not a panacea, solar based technologies represent one important choice in an
increasing array of energy options. For example, solar cooking technology has made a huge
contribution towards addressing the problems associated with using firewood in developing
countries. Various types of solar cooking devices exist. The simplest of them all is the panel
solar cooker, the Cookit, developed by Solar Cookers International (SCI, Sacramento, CA,
USA), as an alternative cooking device for refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia (Safapour
and Metcalf, 1999) and other energy deficient regions. The Cookit (Figure 1) is made from
concentrate solar radiation onto a central space where the cooking vessel is kept. Heating
efficiency is improved by positioning the reflective surfaces to directly face the sun. This
design of a panel solar cooker is considered the simplest and least expensive; however, it
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can heat material up to 125ºC when the ambient temperature is over 20ºC (Technology For
Life (TFL), 1997). A recent study has demonstrated the potential application of the panel
solar cooker in reducing urease activity in full fatty soyabeans (Nyoni et al., 2005).
Application of solar energy in drying systems was seen to retain high levels of ascorbic
The cooking process in the panel solar cooker is accomplished by enclosing a black
cooking vessel in an airtight clear polypropylene bag and placing it in the centre of the
cooker. The reflecting surfaces bounce and concentrate solar radiation to the vessel. The
polypropylene bag allows light waves to pass through and hit the vessel. The vessel absorbs
light waves and radiates them as heat waves (infra-red). Heat waves cannot escape through
transparent surfaces; hence the air trapped by the polypropylene bag heats up and provides
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a hot air-jacket that heats the vessel continuously. This study aimed at diversifying the
application of panel solar cookers to include pasteurisation of drinking water. The main
objective was to evaluate the efficacy of panel solar cookers in inactivating bacteria in
water.
1. How can bacteria contaminated water be made safe to drink in a practical and less
expensive way?
3. Does exposing water to solar radiation inactivate bacteria in water under local
environment?
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MATERIALS AND METHODS
This experiment was conducted over four successive months at the University of
between January and April 2008. Laboratory analyses were conducted in the Department of
Equipment
The equipment used in the experiment included; six panel solar cookers and transparent
polypropylene bags, six black plastic water bottles (800 ml), 100°C thermometer, 10-litre
plastic bucket, incubator, autoclave, digital balance, water bath, disposable petri dishes,
screw cap sample bottles, 500ml conical Erlenmeyer flasks and 1ml disposable pipettes.
Reagents
The chemical reagents used were eosin methelyne blue agar (EMB) (Levine CM 0069
Oxoid Ltd., Basingstoke, Hampshire, England), ringer (Oxoid, Ltd, England) solution and
ethanol.
Water sampling
Water samples were collected from Mzimnene River in Manzini, Swaziland. Water samples
were taken from a point where local vendors collect water for washing fruits and
vegetables. The water was collected aseptically using a sterile 10-litre plastic bucket. The
bucket was submerged in the centre of the river to ensure the sample was clear of
contaminants from the river banks. The bucket was immediately closed and kept from
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direct sunlight. The samples were transported to the laboratory at the Luyengo Campus
where they were stored at 4oC until studied. Escherichia coli were enumerated using the
standard procedure for E. coli counts adapted from Feng et al., (2002). The analyses were
One ringer tablet was dissolved in 500 ml of distilled water in a conical Erlenmeyer flask.
Then 9ml of the ringer solution were transferred into screw caped sample bottles and
autoclaved at 121°C for 15 minutes before use in diluting samples. Dilutions that yielded
Eosin methylene blue (EMB) agar was used as the enumeration media. The basal and
overlay method (Hartman et al., 1975) was adapted and plates were incubated at 37oC for
48 hours. E. coli colonies were detected by their ability to ferment glucose and produce
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Solar water pasteurisation
The experiment started at 1100 hours and ended at 1300 hours and was carried out in four
weather regimes hoping that each month would present a different weather condition.
The panel solar cookers were placed in an open space free from shading for maximum
reception of solar radiation. The vertical reflective sections were secured in some slits on
each side of the front piece and were held in position by fasteners. The panel solar cookers
were placed such that the vertical reflective section faced the direction of the sun to
maximize incident radiation. Six black plastic water bottles (800ml) were filled with water
samples and were enclosed in airtight polypropylene plastic bags. Each bottle was placed in
the centre of a panel solar cooker. The black bottle absorbed solar radiation and radiated
heat to the water and to the outside entrapped air. The heated air acted as an insulator that
helped to continuously heat the water. The panel solar cookers were placed such that the
triangular slot in the front piece was in line with the operator’s shadow when standing right
in front of the device as commonly done when solar cooking. The devices were
repositioned approximately every hour to keep trek of the position of the sun.
Water bottles were withdrawn at random after 30, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 minutes of
panel solar heating. The temperature of the water was measured, using a thermometer,
concurrently at the removal of the sample from the panel solar cooker. The water was
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On each day of the study, the weather information was obtained and recorded. The mean
ambient conditions were conducive for solar water heating with average maximum
temperature of 25.4 +1.8 oC (sd), 9.3 +1.3 (sd) sunshine hours and average wind speed of
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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The changes in water temperature, with exposure time duration to solar radiation, are
shown in Figure 1. In all the months, water temperatures above 65°C were reached within
the three hours of exposure. The highest water temperature of 93°C, was achieved in the
100
90
80
C)
70
o
Water Temperature (
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0 30 60 90 120 150 180
Exposure Time (mins)
radiation.
The pooled average water temperatures for the four months and the decline in E. coli
counts show a negative correlation (r = -0.926) between E. coli count and water temperature
11
(Figure 2.) There was a steady increase in water temperature from the beginning of the
experiment, reaching temperatures above 60°C within 1 ½ hours. The temperature reached
a peak above 80°C within 2 ½ hours and then declined towards the end of the third hour of
exposure. The rate of E. coli inactivation was gradual in the first hour, the count dropped by
0.35-log. There was a highly significant (P<0.01) in the E. coli count from the time the
water temperature reached 65.5°C (Table 1). Complete E. coli inactivation was achieved
when the water temperature reached 77°C. Safapour and Metcalf (1999), recorded
complete E. coli inactivation when the water temperature reached 60°C. In the food
industry, most coliform species have been observed to be heat sensitive with D- values of
less than 2 minutes at temperatures between 54 -65 oC (Juneja and Marmer, 1999, Otieza
et al., 2003, Denis et al.,2006). It is possible that complete E. coli inactivation was reached
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100 2.5
95
90
85 2
80
75
70
o
65 1.5
60
55
50 1
45
40
35 0.5
30
25
20
15 0
10
5
0 -0.5
0 30 60 90 120 150 180
Exposure Time (mins.)
Fig. 2. Water Temperature (°C) and E. coli inactivation (log10 cfu/ml) with time of
Table 1. E. coli inactivation (log10 cfu/ml) with changes in water temperature (°C)
Means followed by the same letter are not significantly different at LSD 0.05
NB Not possible to calculate D- value and z-value because treatments were not kept at
constant temperatures
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CONCLUSION
More often, health officials recommend boiling drinking water for up to 10 minutes in
order to kill disease causing bacteria. This study has demonstrated that water temperatures
high enough to achieve complete pasteurisation can be attained within the Cookit. The
study was conducted in the wet season of the year in most days are partly cloudy. This is
also the period when waterborne disease outbreaks are a threat. The effective performance
of the Cookit in a period when bacterial contamination is expected to be high, suggest that
the device is a potential practical alternative to other sources of energy used to inactivate
bacteria in drinking water. There is, however, need to run a study of this nature over longer
The small quantities of water that can be treated in a day with a Cookit device, dependence
on good solar radiation and the need to manually refocus the reflectors to face the sun, are
limitations of the practical application of this technology. The Cookit can only process 6-7
litres of water per day leaving very little possibility of treating water for storage. The
Cookit does not work on cloudy days hence contingency measures to cater for such days
are needed. Higher capacity solar hot water systems, whose purpose is designed for other
domestic applications besides pasteurising drinking water, are available in the country.
These systems, though more expensive, could be exploited for use at community level.
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