Patent ID: 8293669

Claim:
A method of rehabilitating and disinfecting a granular activated charcoal bed used for purifying water wherein said granular activated charcoal bed is located in a vessel other than an electrochemical activation system and said method is conducted without passing an electrical current through said granular activated charcoal bed, said method comprising the non-simultaneous steps of: (a) contacting said granular activated charcoal bed with an electrochemically-activated water catholyte solution and (b) contacting said granular activated charcoal bed with an electrochemically-activated water anolyte solution, wherein steps (a) and (b) are performed in a manner effective to cause an amount of electrostatically bound material to be released from said granular activated charcoal bed and to neutralize free-floating and granular adherent microbes, prior to contacting said granular activated charcoal bed, said electrochemically-activated water catholyte solution and said electrochemically-activated water anolyte solution have each been produced in an electrochemical activation system by electrochemical activation of an aqueous salt solution comprising not more than 9 grams of salt per liter of water, said salt being sodium chloride, potassium chloride, or a combination thereof, when in undiluted form, said electrochemically-activated water catholyte solution has a negative oxidation-reduction potential of at least − 110 mV and a pH in a range of from about 8 to about 13, and when in undiluted form, said electrochemically-activated water anolyte solution has a positive oxidation-reduction potential of at least + 650 mV and a pH in a range of from about 4.5 to about 7.5.