PORTABLE WATER TREATMENT DEVICE

Ang creative minds ng mga inventor ay nabubuhay o sumisigla every time they observe na nangangailangan ng maka-bagong device o gamit sa pang-araw-araw na  pamumuhay ang mga tao, lalo na kung ang pag-uusapan ay kalusugan. Halimbawa ay ang unang nai-feature natin sa kolum na ito, si Inv. Rodolfo B. Biescas, Sr. Dahil sa naobserbahan niyang lumalalang air pollution sa atmosphere, naisipan niyang gawin ang kanyang invention na Nature’s Air – Room and Car Ionizer. Bukod sa malinis na hangin, may pangangailangan din ang buong mundo ng portable water o malinis na tubig.

Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and his group of advisers including  Prince Willem-Alexander now King of Holland recommended in 2002 to use simple, indigenous, innovative and inexpensive method of water treatment to address the third world problem of drinking water. This is specifically included in the UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG) on water by 2015. According to DENR early this year, an estimated 19 million Filipinos do not have access to clean water. These are found in inhabited islands less than 1,000 hectares without groundwater as well as in far-flung places not reached by the services of the water districts and the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA).

Sa issue ngayon, aala­min naman natin kung papaano makatutulong ang Filipino inventor na si Engr. Ernesto Labuntog upang malutas ang lumalalang problema  sa pangangailangan ng portable water o malinis na tubig sa iba’t ibang bahagi ng mundo, partikular sa Pilipinas.   Sa ilang taong water research and development, nabuo ni Engr. Ernesto Labuntog ang kanyang invention, his contribution to the world upang mapanatili ang malinis na tubig.

Invention:  Portable Water Treatment Device

Phil. Patent No. 1-2006-000135

Abstract

This water treatment device is a miniaturized version of MWSS in Balara and similar treatment   plants   worldwide.   Weighing   an   average   of   eight   (8)   kilograms,   it   can   be transported to any part of the Philippines, including those hard to reach areas in small islands and isolated places. All the functions of the large water treatment plants are miniaturized and simplified so it could be operated by anyone without special skills. No electricity is needed. In   times   of   disasters,   it   can   treat   flood   water   or   any  low   salinity   turbid and biologically contaminated source to pota-ble. The water treatment devices are made of local materials abundant in the Philippines. Manu­facturing   the   minia-turized   water   treatment   devices   can   potentially   employ thousands of informal settlers. This can also be tied up with the building of mini lagoons that can store  run-off  water  needed during  the  dry  months.

The  miniaturized  watertreatment device could be used to treat stored run-off water to make it potable. Objective and advantage Unskilled   personnel   can   manufacture   the   miniaturized   water   treatment   devices. Therefore, if  to be built all over the Philippines, a multiplier-effect can result in suchundertaking   with   the   processing   and   man-ufacturing   of   raw   materials   needed   to assemble miniaturized water treatment devices. The clay pot or “banga” industry can berevived as well by modifying it with a miniaturized water treatment device sitting on top of it. Potable water stored in a clay pot tastes good as well as cold, as if refrigerated. The taste is much better compared to potable water stored in a plastic container.

BARANGAY WATER TREATMENT PLANT

• Enlarged version of the Portable Water Treatment Capacity: 30,000 liters per day.
• Can supply the drinking water needs of up to 1,000 households per day.
• Made of “knock down” parts which can be assembled into a huge platform for four (4) large tanks, 1,000 liters each of raw water for pre-treatment.
• Raw water is pumped into each of the tank. Each of which is provided with a stirrer light enough to use even by chil-dren and housewives.
• Metering cups are used to measure amount of coagulant and chlorine for proper dosage as per “How to use Instruc-tion:” Requires 45 minutes of detention time.
• Power required is 3.0 kwh per day to pump raw water to the tanks 9.0 meters from the source.
• Equipped with backwashing outfit that takes 15 minutes of backwashing and rinsing.
• Production rate per hour is estimated at 1,500 liters.
• Production cost is an average 25 centavos per 5  gallon  (20-L) containers   or   1 ½  centavos per liter.

Si Ernesto A. Labuntog, a Filipino inventor at engineer ay mayroong mahigit 40 years of work experience sa water technologies sa Pilipinas at gayundin sa abroad. Kabilang sa work experience niya ay pag-design, fabrication, operation at maintenance ng reverse osmosis plants.

He finished High School in Cebu City at nag-aral ng mechanical engineering sa Manila. He worked at the Wake Island Air Force Base Mid-Pacific in Hawaii, then at the Sultanate of Oman, then at Saudi Arabia and at the United Arab Emirates.

Nang mag-retire siya noong 1996, sinimulan niyang mag-research on water treatment at naimbento niya ang portable water treatment assembly/device. Taong 2006 nang mapagkalooban siya ng invention patent ng Intellectual Property Office-Philippines.

Mayroon pa siyang ibang imbensyon tulad ng rapid multi-media filtration system or RMMFS, which was granted a pa-tent in 2005.

Two of his inventions are still to be applied for patents: the backwash and rinse outfit of  the portable water treatment device, and a pressurized design of the portable water treatment device that does not need the use of electricity. He is working on sea water desalination without the use of electricity.  BUTCH ROLDAN