WATER TREATMENT

(CEng4172 )

Pre-requisites:- Water Supply and Urban Drainage (CEng3171)

By: Hassen Y.
1

July,2023
 5.
In this lesson we will answer the following questions
How do coagulation and flocculation fit into the water treatment
process?
Which chemical principles influence coagulation and flocculation?
Which chemicals are used in coagulation?
What factors influence coagulation and flocculation?
 What is Coagulation?
Coagulation is the process by which colloidal particles and very fine
solid suspensions initially present in a wastewater are combined into
larger agglomerates that can be separated via sedimentation, flocculation,
filtration, centrifugation or other separation methods·
Coagulation is commonly achieved by adding different types of
chemicals (coagulants) to the waste water to promote destabilization of
the colloid dispersion and agglomeration of the resulting individual
colloidal particles.
 Purpose
The primary purpose of the coagulation/flocculation process is the
removal of turbidity from the water.
 Turbidity is a cloudy appearance of water caused by small particles
suspended therein. Water with little or no turbidity will be clear.
 Location in the Treatment Plant
♦ After the source water has been screened and has passed
through the optional steps of pre-chlorination and aeration,
it is ready for coagulation and flocculation
♦ In theory and at the chemical level, coagulation and flocculation is a
three step process, consisting of flash mixing, coagulation, and
flocculation.
♦ However, in practice in the treatment plant, there are only two steps in
the coagulation/flocculation process - the water first flows into the
flash mix chamber, and then enters the flocculation basin.
Principle of coagulation
♦ It has been found that when certain chemicals are added to water an
insoluble, gelatinous, flocculent is formed.
♦ This gelatinous precipitate during its formation and descent through
the water absorb and entangle very fine suspended matter and
colloidal impurities.
♦ The gelatinous precipitate therefore has the property of removing fine
and colloidal particle quickly and completely than by plain
sedimentation.
♦ These coagulants have further the advantage of removing colour, odor
and taste from the water.
♦ Theses coagulants if properly applied are harmless to the public.
♦ First the coagulant are mixed in the water to produce the required
precipitate, then the water is sent in the sedimentation basins where
sedimentation of fine and colloidal particle takes place through the
precipitate.
The principle of coagulation can be explained from the following two
conditions:
1. Floc formation
♦ When coagulants (chemicals) are dissolved in water and thoroughly
mixed with it, they produce a think gelatinous precipitate.
♦ This precipitate is known as floc and this floc has got the property of
arresting suspended impurities in water during downward travel
towards the bottom of tank.
♦ The gelatinous precipitate has therefore, the property of removing fine
and colloidal particles quickly.
 2. Electric charges
♦ Most particles dissolved in water have a negative charge, so they tend
to repel each other.
♦ As a result, they stay dispersed and dissolved or colloidal in the water.
♦ The purpose of most coagulant chemicals is to neutralize the negative
charges on the turbidity particles to prevent those particles from
repelling each other.
♦ The amount of coagulant which should be added to the water will
depend on the zeta potential, a measurement of the magnitude of
electrical charge surrounding the colloidal particles.
♦ You can think of the zeta potential as the amount of repulsive force
which keeps the particles in the water.
♦ Coagulants tend to be positively charged.
♦ Due to their positive charge, they are attracted to the negative
particles in the water, as shown below.
♦ The combination of positive and negative charge results in a neutral.
♦ As a result, the particles no longer repel each other.
♦ The next force which will affect the particles is known as van der
Waal's forces.
♦ Van der Waal's forces refer to the tendency of particles in nature to
attract each other weakly if they have no charge.
 Factors affecting coagulation:
1. Type of coagulant
2. Dose of coagulant
3. Characteristic of water
1. Type and quantity of suspended matter
2. Temperature of water
3. pH of water
4. Time and method of mixing
Common Coagulants
♦ Coagulant chemicals come in two main types - primary coagulants and coagulant
aids.
♦ Primary coagulants neutralize the electrical charges of particles in the water
which causes the particles to clump together.
♦ Coagulant aids add density to slow-settling flocs and add toughness to the flocs
so that they will not break up during the mixing and settling processes.
♦ In water treatment plants, the following are the coagulants most commonly used:
 Commonly used coagulants are:
Alum: Al2(SO4)3.14H2O
Ferric chloride: FeCl3
Ferric sulfate: FeSO4
Poly-electrolytes (Polymers)
i. Aluminum sulfate [Al 2(SO4) 3.18H2O].
♦ It is also called Alum.
♦ It is the most widely used chemical coagulant in water purification
work.
♦ Alum reacts with water only in the presence of alkalinity.
♦ If natural alkalinity is not present, lime may be added to develop
alkalinity.
♦ It reacts with alkaline water to form aluminum hydroxide (floc),
calcium sulphate and carbon dioxide.
♦ Due to the formation of calcium sulphate, hardness and
corrosiveness of water is slightly increased. .
♦ Chemical Reaction Taking Place

♦ The chemical is found to be most effective between pH range of

6.5 to 8.5.
♦ Its dose may vary from 5 to 30mg/lit, for normal water usually
dose being 14mg/l.
♦ actually, dose of coagulant depends on various factors such as
turbidity, colour, taste, pH value, temperature etc.
♦ Due to the following reason, Alum is the most widely used
chemical coagulant.
1. It is very cheap
2. It removes taste and color in addition to turbidity
3. It is very efficient
4. Flocs formed are more stable and heavy
5. It is not harmful to health
6.It is simple in working, doesn‟t require skilled supervision
for dosing
 ii. Sodium aluminates (Na2Al2O4)
♦ In the process of coagulation, it can remove carbonate and non-carbonate
hardness.
♦ It reacts with calcium and magnesium salts to form flocculent aluminates
of these elements.
Chemical reactions:

♦ The pH should be within the range of 6 and 8.5.

iii. Chlorinated Copperas
♦ Combination of Ferric sulphate and Ferric chloride.
♦ When solution of Ferrous Sulphate is mixed with chlorine, both Ferric
sulphate and Ferric chloride are produced.

♦ Ferric sulphate and Ferric chloride each is an effective floc and so also
their combination.
♦ Both Ferric sulphate and Ferric chloride can be used independently
with lime as a coagulant If alkalinity is insufficient, lime is added.
Chemical reaction taking place

♦ Ferric chloride effective pH range 3.5 – 6.5 or above 8.5 and Ferric
sulphate is effective with pH range of 4 – 7 or above 9.
iv. Poly electrolytes
♦ They are special types of polymers.
♦ They may be anionic, cationic, and non-ionic depending upon the
charge they carry.
♦ Out of these only cationic poly electrolytes can be used independently.
 Example -1
Find out the quantity of alum required to treat 18million liters of water
per day. The dosage of alum is 14mg/lit. Also work out the amount of
CO2 released per liter of treated water.

Solution
Quantity of alum per day=( 14*18*106 )/ 106=252kg
The chemical reaction as follow:
Al2 (SO4)18H2O+3Ca (HCO3)2 2Al(OH)3+3CaSO4+18H2O+6CO2
Molecular weight of alum: =2*26.97+3*32.066+36*1.008+30*16 =666
Molecular weight of CO2=(1*12.0)+2*16) = 44
Thus 666mg of alum release 6*44mg of CO2 14mg of alum will
releases=(14*6*44)/666 =5.55mg of CO2
 Example: 2
If 200 mg/L of alum to be added to achieve complete coagulation. How
much alkalinity is consumed in mg/L as CaCO3?
Solution:
594 mg 366 mg
Al2(SO4)3.14 H2O + 6HCO3-  2Al(OH)3+ 6CO2 + 14H2O + 3SO4-2
594 mg alum consumes 366 mg HCO3-
200 mg alum will consume (366/594) x 200 mg HCO3-
= 123 mg HCO3-
E q u i va l e n t w e i g h t o f C a C O 3
Alkas C a C O = 123
Equivalent weight of H C O 3−
3

= 123 x (50/61)
= 101 mg/L as CaCO3
 Exercise
A water treatment plant uses Ferrous sulphate and lime as a coagulant at
the rate of 10mg/l of water. Find out the quantity of Ferrous sulphate and
the required to treat 27 million liters of water.
Fe SO4 .7H2O + Ca (OH)2 Fe(OH2) + CaSO4 + 7H2O + Ca(OH)2
+ CaO + H2O
 COAGULATION-FLOCCULATION PROCESS
Coagulation/Flocculation process is a two step process - the
water first flows into the Flash mix (Rapid mix) chamber, and
then enters the flocculation basin.
 A. Flash mixer
♦ The mixing of coagulant in water is achieved by rotating
vigorously fans fixed in the mixing basin.
♦ The deflecting wall avoids short circuiting and deflects the
water flow towards the fan blades.
♦ Chemical pipe discharges the coagulant just near the rotating
fan (fig.).
 Design criteria of flash mixer:
1. Detention period – 30 to 60 sec
2. Velocity of flow – 0.9m/sec
3. Depth – 1 to 3m
4. Rotation per minute of blade – 100
5. Power required – 0.041kW/1000m3 /day
B. Deflector plate mixer
♦ Mixing is achieved by diffusing water through a deflection
plate.
♦ Water enters from inlet pipe and comes out through a hole
provided below the deflector plate where it gets agitated.
♦ Chemical pipe discharges the coagulant just near the deflector
plate, where it gets thoroughly mixed with water (fig.).
 Example – Rapid Mixing
A square rapid-mixing basin, with a depth of water equal to
1.25 times the width, is to be designed for a flow of 7570
m3/d. The velocity gradient is to be 790 s-1, the detention time
is 40 seconds, the operating temperature is 10 C, and the
turbine shaft speed is 100 rpm. Determine:
• The basin dimensions
• The power required

µ=0.0013 N-s/m2 at 10oC

Find the volume of the basin,
V=Q*t(detention time)
7570m3 min
V =   40 sec = 3.5m 3
1440 min 60 sec
The dimensions are
(W)(W)(1.25W) = 3.50 m 3
W = 1.41 m
The depth of the basin, H = (1.25)(1.41 m) = 1.76 m
Use W = 1.41 m; H = 1.76
Using the velocity gradient equation

P = G 2V = (0.0013N − s / m 2 )(790/ sec)(1.411.411.76m 3 )

P = 2863N − m / s
 Flocculation
♦ After adding the coagulant to the raw water, rapid agitation is
developed in the mixture to obtain a thorough mixing.
♦ Next to rapid mixing, mixture is kept slowly agitated for about
30 to 60min.
♦ Slow mixing process in which particles are brought into contact
in order to promote their agglomeration is called flocculation.
♦ The tank or basin in which flocculation process is carried out is
called flocculation chamber.
♦ The velocity of flow in the chamber is kept between 12 –
18cm/sec.
♦ Activated carbon in powder form can be used to speed up the
flocculation
32
♦ The rate of agglomeration or flocculation is dependent upon
o Type and concentration of turbidity
o Type of coagulant and its dose
o Temporal mean velocity gradient G in the basin
♦ The mean velocity gradient is the rate of change of velocity per
unit distance normal to the section - (meter per second per meter)
(T-1 ).
♦ The value of G can be computed in terms of power input by the
following equation Where
W P
G = velocity gradient, sec-1
G= =
 V
W = power imparted per unit volume of basin, N-m/s-m3
P = power imparted, N-m/s
V = basin volume, m3
 = absolute viscosity of water ( =0.00131 N-s/m2)
 Gt values for flocculation

Type G (s-1) Gt (unitless)

Low-turbidity, color 20-70 60,000 to 200,000
removal coagulation
High-turbidity, solids 30-80 36,000 to 96,000
removal coagulation
Softening, 10% solids 130-200 200,000 to 250,000
Softening, 39% solids 150-300 390,000 to 400,000

Values of Gt from 104 to 105 are commonly used, with t ranging from
10 to 30 min.
♦ The flocculation technique most commonly used involves mechanical
agitation with rotating paddle wheels or vertical mounted turbines
(fig).
♦ The design criteria of a horizontal continuous flow rectangular basin
flocculator:

35
 Clarifier (Secondary Sedimentation)
♦ After flocculation, water enters the settling tank which is
normally called a clarifier.
♦ Water is retained in the sedimentation tank for a sufficient
period to permit the settlement of the floc to the bottom.
♦ The principle of design of clarifier is the same as for plain
sedimentation basin except that its detention period is lower.
♦ The detention period commonly adopted is 2.5 to 3hrs with
an overflow rate of 1 to 1.2 m/hr.

37
 Flocculent settling
♦ Flocculent particles resulting from coagulation will
agglomerate while settling with a resultant increase in
particle size.
♦ The density of the composite particle will decrease due
inclusion of water, however, the settling velocity will
increase. (0.1 to 3mm best floc size)
♦ The clarification of dilute suspensions of flocculating
particle is a function of:
o Settling property of the particles
o Flocculating characteristic of the suspension
38
Rapid Mixing and Flocculation

Rapid mix Chemical mixing

Coagulation Destabilization

Flocculation Floc formation

Sedimentation Flocs settle out

40
 Example 1-Flocculation
♦ A cross-flow, horizontal shaft, paddle wheel flocculation basin is to be
designed for a flow of 25,000m3/d, a mean velocity gradient of 26.7/sec (at
10 C), and a detention time of 45 minutes.
♦ The GT value should be from 50,000 to 100,000.
♦ Tapered flocculation is to be provided, and the three compartments of equal
depth in series are to be used.
♦ The G values determined from laboratory tests for the three compartments
are G1 = 50/sec, G2 = 20/sec, and G3 = 10/sec.
♦ These give an average G value of 26.7/sec.
♦ The compartments are to be separated by slotted, redwood baffle fences,
and the floor of the basin is level.
♦ The basin should be 15 m in width to adjoin the settling tank. Determine:
1. The GT value
2. The basin dimensions 41

3. The power to be imparted to the water in each compartment

 Solution
The GT value = (26.7/sec)(45 min)(60 sec/min) = 72,100
Since GT value is between 50,000 and 100,000, the detention time is satisfactory.
Basin volume, V = (flow)  (detention time) = (25,000 m3/d)(45 min)(hr/60 min)
= 781 m3
Profile area = (volume / width) = (781 m3 / 15 m) = 52.1 m2
Assume compartments are square in profile, and x is the compartment width and
depth.
Thus, (3x)(x) = 52.1 m2 = 17.37 → x = 4.17 m and 3x = 3(4.17) =
12.51m
Then, width = depth = 4.17 m and length = 12.51 m
volume = (4.17)(12.51)(15.0) = 783 m3
The Power, P = G2V (at 10 C,  = 0.00131 N-s/m2)
P (for 1st compartment) = (0.00131 N-s/m2)(502/s2)(783 m3/3) = 855 N-m/s = 855
J/s = 855 W
P (for 2nd compartment) = (0.00131)(202)(783/3) = 137 W
P (for 3rd compartment) = (0.00131)(102)(783/3) = 34.2 W 42
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