The process of removing undesirable chemicals, biological contaminants, suspended solids and gases from contaminated water is called as water purification. Purification of water is mainly done to produce water that is fit for a specific purpose. Generally water is purified for human consumption i.e. drinking water , but water purification can be done even for other purposes which includes meeting the requirements of medical, pharmacological, chemical and industrial applications.

Water purification methods that are broadly used include physical processes such as filtration, sedimentation, and distillation, biological processes such as slow sand filters or biologically active carbon, chemical processes such as flocculation and chlorination and the use of electromagnetic radiation such as ultraviolet light.

A purification instrument called as Filtration is a physical process used to remove solids from liquids. There are some different filtration techniques. A filter consists of a tank, the filter media and a controller to enable backflow. Sedimentation is a physical water treatment process that uses gravity to remove suspended solids from water.

In distillation, water is distilled to remove impurities, such as salt from seawater. In sand filtration the filter medium consists of a multiple layer of sand with a variety in size and specific gravity. When water flows through the filter, the suspended solids precipitate in the sand layers as residue and the water, which is reduced in suspended solids, flows out of the filter. Flocculation and sedimentation are widely employed in the purification of drinking water as well as sewage treatment, storm water treatment and treatment of other industrial wastewater streams. Chlorination is a method of water purification. It is the process of adding the element chlorine to make it fit for human consumption as drinking water. Water which has been treated with chlorine is effective in preventing the spread of waterborne disease. Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation i.e. UVGI is a method that uses ultraviolet i.e. UV light at sufficiently short wavelength to kill microorganisms. It is used in different applications, such as food, air and water purification

According to water purification market research report, the United States represents the single largest market worldwide. 

Water Purification Industry Current Trends

According to a recent report, the global water treatment chemicals and technology market was worth USD 115,809.7 million in 2011 and is expected to reach USD 149,895.6 million in 2018, growing at a CAGR of 3.8% from 2013 to 2018.

Major Water Purification Industry Players

Some of the major water purification industry players include 3M Purification Inc., Asahi Kasei Corporation, BRITA LP, BWT AG, Calgon Carbon Corporation, Culligan International, Dow Water & Process Solutions, GE Water & Process Technologies, Groupe Novasep, H2O Innovation Inc.etc.