TiO2 solar photocatalysis has been proven to be a degradation process for aqueous organic contaminant leading to total mineralisation of a large number of compounds. Furthermore, the interest in using this technique for water disinfection has grown in the last decade. Recent publications have reported photokilling of bacteria and viruses by TiO2 photocatalysis. Therefore, solar photocatalysis disinfection seems to be a very promising process, which could help to improve public health in rural areas of developing countries. The objective of this work was to assess the feasibility of using TiO2 solar photocatalysis to disinfect water supplies for future applications in developing countries. This article reviews the viability of solar photocatalysis for disinfection in low cost compound parabolic collectors, using sunlight and titanium dioxide semiconductor, both applied as slurry and supported. We report on the bactericidal action of TiO2 on a pure culture of Escherichia coli with a low cost photoreactor based on compound parabolic collectors. The influence of different experimental set-ups and parameters are also analysed. The results and potential application of the solar photocatalysis technology to water disinfection are studied within the frame of two research EU projects whose objective consist on the development of a fully autonomous solar reactor system to purify drinking water in remote locations of developing countries. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.