Ever since time began, the process of water distillation has been there in nature and human beings have used this process for many years. It still is a successful yet effortless process of purifying water by getting rid of majority of bacteria, viruses and other micro-organisms, along with other contaminants.

The Water Cycle which is otherwise recognized as the Hydrologic Cycle, interprets the process that moves water around the earth. In uncomplicated words, it means that the sunlight rises the temperature of the water in our oceans, rivers and lakes, which then brings about the water to evaporate and ascend into the air. After that, when the water vapour cools down, it condenses to from clouds which then become heavy due to water and eventually rain back down to earth. Man realised that he could follow the instance of this process to generate a purified drinking water source by heating the ocean or river water, and collecting the condensed vapour.

The distillation process has subsequently been used in a number of ways to separate mixtures based on their different boiling points. Crude oil is distilled to split the different components for their exact uses such as heating, power generation and transport. Air is distilled to part the oxygen, nitrogen and argon components for industrial use. Most notably perhaps, and dating back as far as the 2nd millennium BC, distillation techniques were applied to produce alcoholic drinks. The method was also used since the eleventh century to make vital oils and other herbal extracts.

Modern day uses for distilled water in the house incorporate topping up your car battery, filling your steam iron and filling aquariums. Distilled water is also widely used in industry, including the making of various chemical and medical products, for instance medicines, vaccines and intravenous solutions.