Advantages of using photocatalytic water treatments include the ability to treat low levels of organic and inorganic microcontaminants as well as organisms such as bacteria, virus and cyst-forming species. In addition, heavy metals, like lead, cadmium and mercury, can be photo-plated thereby removing these species from the aqueous phase. Organic contaminants are mineralized to carbon dioxide and mineral acids. A further feature of water phase photocatalysis is that little, if any, by-products are produced.