Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 1

Disinfection is of critical importance in the treatment of drinking water in order to significantly reduce or remove pathogens known to pose a serious risk to human health. One of the most common disinfection methods used today is chlorination by chlorine, iodine or chloramine. This method requires frequent dosing of chlorine in water supplies which can create disinfecting by-products (DBPs) known to be harmful to human health. An alternative disinfection method to conventional chlorination which limits the formation of DBP production is the use of Exigence's antimicrobial resin. Exigence Technologies is a Canadian-based biotechnical surface functionalization company. Exigence is the licensor of an advanced antimicrobial platform technology that is capable of bonding to multiple surface types (textiles, polymers, or used in solution) and has wide application potential across multiple industries. Exigence has integrated their innovative N-Halamine based antimicrobial precursor into a resin media, developing a product with enhanced treatment capabilities and biocide activity. The primary objective of this research project is to investigate the developed antimicrobial resin for application in drinking water disinfection, with particular focus on the determination of CT (chlorine concentration x contact time) values, necessary to calculate the disinfectant dosage for the inactivation of E. coli. The results of this applied research will enhance Exigence Technologies technical knowledge and understanding of this product, and assess its application in the drinking water disinfection sector.