Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
for Injection, Sterile Water for Irrigation, and Water for Injection. The production of these
waters all fall under the standards set by the USP. Some of these waters are used in medi-
cines, while others may be used in the cleaning and preparatory steps.
The USP standards inluence the pharmaceutical water business because they spell out
the acceptable treatment approaches for making the different grades of water.
13.7.2 Pharmaceutical Water Technologies
The pharmaceutical and allied industries are one of the largest users of high-purity water.
Common examples of products sold for pharma-grade water treatment include instru-
ments, distillation equipment, deionization systems (frequently a combination of RO and
EDI), microiltration (MF) and ultrailtration (UF) systems, ultraviolet (UV) light, and
replacement items (i.e., membranes, ilter cartridges, and other disposables).
It is common for most plants producing Puriied Water to have a combination system
of RO-EDI. For Water for Injection, distillation systems are commonly used. The USP
guidelines specify that the source water meets drinking water standards as set forth by
t h e E PA .
13.7.3 Pharmaceutical Industry Summary
The pharmaceutical industry is an important market for high-purity water treatment. The
standards used to determine the treatment approaches come from pharmacopeias such as
produced by the USP, JP, and EP. These standards, in turn, inluence the type of treatment
equipment selected by pharmaceutical plants to produce the different grades of water used
in their processes. In addition to traditional plants producing medicines, the pharmaceuti-
cal water business extends into other types or related businesses that are also required to
follow the USP guidelines and are regulated by the FDA. They include kidney dialysis,
biopharmaceuticals, medical equipment and devices, and certain consumer products.
The next section of this chapter will examine semiconductor water treatment.
13.8 Semiconductor Water
The semiconductor industry is made up of companies that offer technologies and products
that touch many areas of modern life. High-purity water is important to the manufacture
of semiconductor wafers and lat panel display products. This water is used at different
stages of manufacturing to clean devices, and its cleanliness is essential to prevent the
high-purity water from being the source of product defects.
13.8.1 Industry Trends
For the water business, sales opportunities arise when new fabrication plants (fabs) are
built. These facilities need treatment systems that can cost several million dollars, as well
as high-purity water distribution systems. Table 13.3 [12] shows the breakdown on devel-
opment trends on the number of semiconductor manufacturing, pilot, and research fabs
worldwide.
