New technologies for drinking water

The global population is expected to be about 8.2 billion by 2025. This suggests a dire need to prepare for the ongoing and impending challenges linked with water stress to create a water-secure ecosystem. Densely populated countries such as India and China are enhancing the production of semiconductor, petrochemical, automotive, chemical, and pharmaceutical products, which are materially enriching. Simultaneously, our quickly diminishing resources are being further stressed by unprocessed industrial waste. Therefore, to build a sustainable and hygienic livelihood for all, it is imperative to be able to remove conventional and emerging pollutants from water in an affordable and energy-efficient manner. Nanotechnology-based solutions have made substantial contributions towards offering sustainable solutions in the clean water space. Although nanotechnology-based water purification has been an active research area for decades, it is yet to occupy a significant market share because of irregularities in the context of sensitivity, efficient operation in the field, and higher cost in comparison to traditional technologies. This chapter will highlight emerging technologies for drinking water which have also reached society in the form of easily operable devices, such as nanomaterial-incorporated handpumps, desalination devices, and atmospheric water generators.