11. Conclusion

Disinfection can no longer be seen as the final stage of treatment, involving the injection of a disinfectant into the water prior to distribution.

Disinfection is the result of the combined effectiveness of each treatment stage:

• some of them, by retaining suspended solids, eliminate potential "shelters";

• some by reducing concentrations of dissolved organic matter, reduce immediate demand and improve the stability of the disinfectant over time;

• others by retaining germ-sized particles: effectively participating in disinfection;

• and finally, the disinfectants themselves are directly germicidal.

Among potential disinfection tools, ozone and chlorine continue to dominate, but membranes...