AGENT AND METHOD FOR IMPROVEMENT OF WATER AND OTHER POTABLE LIQUIDS
The present invention comprises an agent for the improvement of water and other drinkable fluids. In addition the present invention comprises methods for use of the agent, as well as uses thereof.
The taste and quality of drinking water is of great importance for public health, since the human body consists of about 70 % water. Large amounts of communal and other piped water are imbibed either directly, or indirectly as foodstuffs produced with the addition of water. This means that infected water can be a important source of infection for infectious diseases. The governments and water plants have therefore provided for quality surveillance and treatment of the water. Among other things one has used chlorine as an artificial additive, for instance in the format of hypo chlorite. This treatment can in itself cause a considerable health benefit of some aspects of the water quality, while other aspects to some degree may suffer due to this. It is especially known that the water can develop a unpleasant chlorine taste. There have also been disclosed suspicions of a small increase in the risk of cancer. The possible increase may be related to that some organic chlorine compounds are made as a result of the addition of chlorine. Assertions of other health risks have also been put forth, without gaining common agreement among those skilled in the field. Such dangers may however not be excluded.
From the health authorities point of view the increased risk of cancer is minimal in comparison with the massive danger of infection one may be confronted with if the addition of chlorine is absent. Even in some other countries where the quality of the untreated water often is worse, and the addition of chlorine thus greater, the practice of adding chlorine is therefore continued.
Thus the common consumer is left with a water quality that usually is fairly reassuring as concerns the danger of infection, but which may be unfavourable due to chlorine taste and may possible lead to an increase in the cancer frequency in the long term, or other health risks as for instance cardiovascular diseases. This has probably lead to a certain amount of worry among a share of the consumers. Based on this background there is a need for water improving additives that improve the taste of the drinking water, and possibly also reduce the content of chlorine and possibly dangerous chlorine compounds. Such additions may for example be used in connection with drawing or use off the drinking water.
Even, with the relatively strict water control we have in this country, there still remains a certain danger of disease causing bacteria being contained in the drinking water. This concerns among others private wells. Further, there is a danger of mixing of unclean water in the pipe network. The drinking water can construe a danger of infection also when travelling abroad. Thus we are faced with a need for a water improving agent that also may protect against the danger of infection.
On the consumer market there are agents that say they are water-improving additives (water purifying apparatus are not considered among these). Some of these are coral based, more precisely coral polyp based, whale others seems to be based upon, or mainly comprise, shell sand. Closer scrutiny shows that these only to some degree, and for a limited time period, decrease the chlorine level. In addition this only holds for free chlorine. As far as we know, there exists on the market only the applicant's patented water improving agent (among others approved as EP 1 250 291 B1 and US 6,808,650), which remove bound chlorine or organic bound chlorine from drinking water. To avoid confusion, we therefore also mention that ionic chloride, i.e. CP, in this connection is considered as harmless. There is also not presently available any other product than our earlier patented water improving agent which remove disease causing bacteria from drinking water, without adding chloride or some other component.
Of prior art we mentione JP 06.304577A, Hisashi Sato: JP 04 066181 A, lsao Horiuchi; US 4707263A, Nishimori et. Al.; US 450051 OA, Goldstein; JP 57159494A, Takeshi Janagisawa, BE 691735A, Serac; WO 9528830A, Aguacenter, Inc, as well as DE 51320C, Love. A considerable problem with the products described in among others the above-mentioned patents, inclusive the applicants patents, is that the
agent add a new and undesirable taste to the water. When selling purified water, for example in bottles, this taste is not acceptable.
Further there exist a number of known solutions, described in among others in JP 561057, US 5,198,114, RU 2135258, US 2004/0020859, WO 00/05178, HU 54694, EP B1 221696, and JP 60064690. In these patents dolomite is used among other things as a filtering medium, as a treatment medium for ice-covered surfaces, or as a nutritional medium for harmless bacteria. Most of these publications use burnt, that is heat-treated, dolomite, or dolomite in combination with one or more other ingredients in order to attain the desired effect.
There is a need for a water-improving additive as mentioned above, for use in connection with imbibing or consuming piped water.
Based upon this, the present applicant has for years experimented with different mixtures of a possible water improving agent, and after considerable work the applicant has arrived at a composition comprising a suitable buffer of dolomite, and a water soluble, reducing compound. The agent in accordance with the present patent application does have the effect aimed for as concerns the removal of chlorine, and does not cause any undesirable taste, in contrast to the applicants' earlier patented product, which contained coral algae/ calk algae.
The present application aims at solving the problem by using dolomite, which is mixed with the water to be purified.
The invention is characterized by the characterizing parts of the independent claims, that is, by the agent comprising dolomite, salt(s) of carboxylic acid(s), and a gel forming agent that binds bacteria in the fluid, where at least the gel forming agent is present in a container that is permeable for liquids, but which keeps the gel apart from the fluid that is to be drunk.
Alternate embodiments are characterized by the dependent claims.
Dolomite consists of magnesium carbonate and calcium carbonate. The magnesium content is about 13 % by weight. The chemical formula is MgCOβ *CaCO3. Dolomite contains about 56 % by weight of calcium carbonate, and about 44 % by weight of magnesium carbonate. Dolomite may also contain small amounts of calcium oxide,
magnesium oxide, silicone oxide, aluminium oxide, and iron oxide, or other compounds. Dolomite is one of the most common minerals in the crust of the earth.
Some suppliers deliver dolomite containing small amounts of lead, but this cannot be used for the present purpose.
When dolomite only is used to purify the water, the pH value of the water is increased over time. To regulate the pH value to a desired level the dolomite may be filtered out, or a reduction agent may for example be added. Preferred reducing agents are salt(s) of carboxyl acid(s). Other reducing agents, compounds or elements with the same effect can also be used.
As concerns reduction agents, both organic and inorganic reduction agents may in principle be used. However, it is important to avoid a metallic taste, colouring agents and so forth. Reduction agents (preferably antioxidants) approved for use in nutritional compounds are especially of interest in this connection. Here we refer to the lists of additives; so-called "E-compounds", distributed by the Norwegian food enforcement agency; "Statens naeringsmiddeltilsyn". Among these special mention is made of ascorbates (salts of ascorbic acid), citrates (slats of citric acid), maltates (salts of malic acid), and lactates (salts of lactic acid). A preferred reduction agent is calcium ascorbate.
The necessary reduction of chlorine and chloride compounds is easiest achieved under certain conditions. In addition the reaction rate is influenced by the possible presence of trace metals, as well as water soluble iron(lll) or copper(ll) compounds.
When dissolved in drinking water the agent gives a weakly basic solution. Addition of a water-improving agent in accordance with the invention causes a rapid and effective removal of chlorine, and provides an improvement of the taste of the drinking-water, lacking a possible burnt taste of heat treated coral algae.
An expert with extended experience with drinking-water has tested the smell and taste of water treated with dolomite powder. The expert smelled the glasses to be used before they were filled with the finished treated water. He tasted and smelled the water in the same manner as vine tasters do during testing of vine. The conclusion given was that the water purified by dolomite had no undesirable taste,
and this is a considerable improvement in relation to earlier known water improving agents.
The agent in accordance with the present invention, optionally combined with one or more additional components, is suited for addition to improve the quality of drinking water, that is, as a water-improving agent. When dissolved in drinking water it results in a weakly basic solution, as mentioned earlier, and at the same time some salts of carboxyl acids causes an increased uptake of minerals and nutrients, and is important for the energy production in the cells of the body.
A preferred composition utilizes a mixture of dolomite and ascorbate, for example as follows:
0,1-99,9 % by weight dolomite; 0,01-50 % by weight ascorbic acid salt; and a gel forming agent that removes free bacteria contained in the water.
Among the ascorbic acid salts alkaline and earth alkaline metal salts of ascorbic acid are mentionable.
A very important aspect of the new water-improving agent is that it improves the taste of the drinking water.
Another embodiment of the water-improving agent of the present invention is that it leads to a rapid and effective removal of the total chlorine.
A further aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, is the stabilization of the pH by the water-improving agent to a correct and, for drinking water, advantageous value, in relation to the guidelines for drinking water as put forth by the Norwegian social and health department.
Another aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention is that it leads to the removal of the bacteria in the drinking water.
A very essential aspect of the chemical composition of the invention, is that all the components by themselves and together are completely safe as concerns health It is especially interesting if for example magnesium ascorbate or calcium ascorbate is
used. They are a salt of vitamin C, and thus completely safe as regards health in the amounts and for the use intended.
Another aspect of the present invention is that the water-improvement agent's optionally originally wet components may be dried, and as a whole finely ground to a free-flowing powder that does not segregate, as would usually be expected.
An essential aspect of the water improvement agent is that it works quickly, so that it would normally have done its job before consumption.
Yet another essential aspect of the water improvement agent is that is has a stabile composition over time, both as a regards pH and total chlorine.
A further aspect of the agent of the present invention is that only to a small degree increases the pH above a neutral level.
In the present description, certain technical expressions are used. This concerns for instance:
- active chlorine - free chlorine
- bound chlorine
- total chlorine.
All of the four above mentioned technical expressions are used in concordance with the definitions in NS 4729.
By comparative investigations between our earlier patented water improvement agent and available water improvement agents on the market, it has been shown that our product has a superior ability at removing chlorine. This has been confirmed by laboratories in concordance with NS 4729. The new water improvement agent has the same abilities to remove total chlorine due to the reduction agent.
Results of chlorine tests, bacterial tests, pH tests, and so forth we will return with later when they received from the laboratory. We have, however , ourselves carried out a chlorine test of this product which shows the same very rapid effect of converting free and bound chlorine to chloride ions. We refer to the
earlier mentioned taste test, carried out by a water expert, and to the internal tests which show that the taste of the drinking water is markedly improved.