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Received Nov 8, 2017; Revised Dec 17, 2017; Accepted Jan 15, 2018
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1. Introduction
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that over 4 million deaths per year, of which more than 1.5 million involve children under the age of 5, are attributable to unsafe drinking water [1]. Centralized water treatment facilities, like those found in cities and suburban areas in the developed world, are not feasible for many developing communities due to the large infrastructure investment. Alternatively, the WHO has suggested a decentralized approach of treatment in home immediately prior to consumption—commonly referred to as point-of-use (POU) water treatment [2, 3]. POU technologies have the potential to significantly improve microbial quality of drinking water and reduce the risk of diarrheal disease and death, particularly in children [4]. A POU technology must be effective with respect to removal and/or deactivation of waterborne pathogens under a wide range of water chemistries and must be simple to use to ensure long-term effectiveness and reduce risk of recontamination [3, 5]. The technology much also be socially acceptable and affordable, commonly achieved by the use of local labor and materials [6–8]. Ceramic water filters, produced with local labor and materials, are an appealing POU water treatment technology, and over 50 production facilities exist worldwide [9]. Clay, sawdust, and water are mixed and then molded into a pot shape. The filter is then fired in a kiln, causing the clay to sinter into a ceramic and sawdust to combust. This creates pore channels that allow water flow. After quality testing, the filter is painted with a silver nanoparticle solution, where the silver acts as a well-studied antimicrobial agent without changing the taste, color, or odor of treated water [10–14]. The ceramic filter is suspended inside a plastic bucket with a spigot on the bottom for personal use. Source water is poured into the ceramic filter, then the water percolates through to the lower reservoir, and clean water is dispensed through the spigot. The relatively small pore size (mean around 10 µm) of the ceramic filter helps remove turbidity and larger...