9504835 Haas This is an award to support research the objective of which is to determine the efficacy of and optimal conditions for the use of a process known as electroporation as a direct inactivating agent or as a promoter of inactivation for microbial contaminants of water. The electroporation process as applied to inactivation of microorganisms suspended in a fluid involves subjecting the suspension to brief high-density voltage pulses produced by the decaying discharges from a resistance-capacitance electrical circuit. The investigator plans on conducting this research on a laboratory scale using cysts of Giardia muris and oocysts of Cryptosporidium parvum. The investigator plans on studying the effects of electroporation alone and as a potential promoter of inactivation in the presence of other disinfectants such as ozone, monochloramine and free chlorine. Results of this research are expected to identify conditions under which electroporation can be used alone as a process for disinfection of water that has been contaminated by organisms exemplified by those to be studied in this project. Positive results in that respect would provide the basis for the potential use of this process in environmental engineering practice with special emphasis on disinfection of drinking water. In addition, results are expected to provide insights into the structure and physiological properties of cysts and oocysts of potential use in basic microbiological or medical research.
