Water Treatment

Reflections
What

are the two broad tasks of

environmental engineers?
What is the connection between the broad
tasks of environmental engineers and
building a water treatment plant?
Why may the water need to be
changed/treated?

Simple Sorting
Goal:

clean water
Source: contaminated water
Solution: separate contaminants from water
How?

Where are we going?

Unit processes* designed to
particles
remove ___________
remove ________
_________
dissolved
chemicals
inactivate __________
pathogens
*Unit process: a process that is used in similar
ways in many different applications

sedimentation
filtration
...

Unit Processes Designed to

Remove Particulate Matter
Screening
Sedimentation
Coagulation/flocculation
Filtration
slow

sand filters
rapid sand filters
diatomaceous earth filters
membrane filters

Conventional Surface Water

Treatment
Raw water
Filtration

Screening
Alum
Polymers

sludge
Coagulation

sludge
Cl2

Disinfection

Flocculation

Storage

Sedimentation

Distribution

sludge

Screening

Removes large solids

logs
branches
rags
fish

Simple process

may incorporate a mechanized trash

removal system

Protects pumps and pipes in WTP

Sedimentation
the

oldest form of water treatment

uses gravity to separate particles from water
often follows coagulation and flocculation
occurs in NYCs __________
reservoirs

Sedimentation: Effect of the

particle concentration
Dilute

suspensions

Particles

act independently

Concentrated

suspensions

Particle-particle

interactions are significant

Particles may collide and stick together
(form flocs)
Particle flocs may settle more quickly
Particle-particle forces may prevent further
consolidation

How fast do particles fall in

dilute suspensions?
What

are the important

parameters?
Initial

conditions
After falling for some time...
What

are the important

forces?
_________
Gravity

Fluid drag
__________

Sedimentation:
Particle Terminal Fall Velocity
F ma

Identify forces

Fd Fb W 0

Fb

p particle density

Fd

w water density

" pr pg
W = _______

g acceleration due to gravity

C D drag coefficien t

pr wg
Fb = "________

Fd C D AP w

Vt 2
2

p particle volume
projected
Ap particle cross sectional area

Vt particle terminal velocity

Particle Terminal Fall Velocity

(continued)
Fd W Fb
C D AP w

Vt 2

Vt 2

p ( p w )g

2
2 p ( p w ) g

d
Ap 3

Vt

We havent yet assumed a shape

C D AP w
p

Force balance (zero acceleration)

4 gd p w
3 CD

p r
3

A p r 2

sphere
Assume a _______

4 gd ( r p - r w )
Vt =
3 CD
rw

Drag Coefficient on a Sphere

Stokes Law

100
10
1

laminar

turbulent

00

00
0

10
00
00

Reynolds Number

10
00

00
10
00

00
10
0

10
00

0
10

10

0.1

0.
1

Drag Coefficient

1000

turbulent
boundary

Vt d

Drag Coefficient:
Equations
General Equation

Vt

Vt d

4 gd p w
3 CD

24
Laminar flow R < 1 C D
R

w
Vt

Transitional flow 1 < R <

104

24
3
C D 1/ 2 0.34
R R

Fully turbulent flow R >

104

C D 0.4

Vt

d 2 g p w
18

gd p w
0.3

Example Calculation of Terminal

Velocity
Determine the terminal settling velocity of a
cryptosporidium oocyst having a diameter of 4 m
and a density of 1.04 g/cm3 in water at 15C
[=1.14x10-3 kg/(sm)].
= 999 kg/m 3
w

g = 9.81 m/s 2

Work in your teams.

Use mks units (meters, kilograms, seconds).
Convert your answer to some reasonable set of units
that you understand.
Solution

Reynolds?

Sedimentation Basin
long rectangular
basins
4-6 hour
retention time
3-4 m deep
max of 12 m
wide
max of 48 m
long

Inlet zone

Settling zone

Sludge out

Sludge zone

Outlet zone

Vh

Q = flow rate

Inlet zone

Horizontal velocity

A = WH
Vertical velocity
A

d g p w
2

Vt

Sludge out

Vh
Vc

Sludge zone

18

Vc terminal velocity that just barely gets captured

Outlet zone

Sedimentation Basin:
Critical Path
H

Sedimentation Basin:
Importance of Tank Surface Area

W
Vc

HQ

Q
LW

residence time
WHL volume of tank
A s top surface area of tank

Q
As

Want a _____
small Vc, ______
large As.

Vh
Vc

Suppose water were flowing up through sedimentation

tank. What would be the velocity of a particle that is just
barely removed?

Lamella
Sedimentation tanks are
commonly divided into
layers of shallow tanks
(lamella)
The flow rate can be
increased while still
obtaining excellent
particle removal

Lamella decrease distance particle

has to fall in order to be removed

Outlet
zone

Inlet
zone

Design Criteria for

Sedimentation Tanks

Settling zone

Sludge zone

_______________________________
Minimal turbulence
_______________________________
Uniform velocity
_______________________________
No scour of settled particles
_______________________________
Slow moving particle collection system
_______________________________
Q/As must be small (to capture small particles)

This will be one of the ways you can improve the

performance of your water filtration plant.

Sedimentation of Small
Particles?
How

could we increase the sedimentation

rate of small particles?
Increase d (stick
particles together)

d g p w Increase density difference

Vt
(dissolved air flotation)
18
2

Increase g (centrifuge)

Decrease viscosity
(increase temperature)

Particle/particle interactions

Electrostatic repulsion
In most surface waters, colloidal surfaces are negatively
charged
like charges repel

van der Waals force

an attractive force
decays more rapidly with distance than the electrostatic
force
is a stronger force at very close distances

Energy Barrier
Increase

kinetic energy of

particles
increase

+ +++++
++++
+ ++++ +
++

stir

Decrease

temperature

+ ++
+ +
+ ++
+

magnitude of energy

barrier
change

the charge of the particles

introduce positively charged
particles

Coagulation
Coagulation

is a physical-chemical process
whereby particles are destabilized
Several mechanisms
adsorption

of cations onto negatively charged

particles
decrease the thickness of the layer of counter
ions
sweep coagulation
interparticle bridging

Coagulation Chemistry
The

standard coagulant for water supply is

Alum [Al2(SO4)3*14.3H2O]
Typically 5 mg/L to 50 mg/L alum is used
The chemistry is complex with many
possible species formed such as AlOH+2,
Al(OH)2+, and Al7(OH)17+4
The primary reaction produces Al(OH)3
Al2(SO4)3 + 6H2O2Al(OH)3 + 6H+ + 3SO4-2
pH = -log[H+]

Coagulation Chemistry
Aluminum

hydroxide [Al(OH)3] forms

amorphous, gelatinous flocs that are heavier
than water
The flocs look like snow in water
These flocs entrap particles as the flocs
settle (sweep coagulation)

Coagulant introduction with

rapid mixing
The

coagulant must be mixed with the water

Retention times in the mixing zone are
typically between 1 and 10 seconds
Types of rapid mix units
pumps
hydraulic

jumps
flow-through basins with many baffles
In-line blenders

Flocculation
Coagulation

has destabilized the particles

by reducing the energy barrier
Now we want to get the particles to collide
We need relative motion between particles
Brownian

motion is too slow

_________
Differential _____________
sedimentation rates
Turbulence
__________ shears the water

Flocculation
Turbulence

provided by
gentle stirring
Turbulence also keeps large
flocs from settling so they
can grow even larger!
High sedimentation rate of
large flocs results in many
collisions!
Retention time of 10 - 30
minutes

Coagulation/Flocculation
Inject

Coagulant in rapid mixer

Water flows from rapid mix unit into
flocculation tank
gentle

stirring
flocs form
Water

flows from flocculation tank into

sedimentation tank
make

sure flocs dont break!

flocs settle and are removed

Jar Test
Mimics

the rapid mix, coagulation,

flocculation, sedimentation treatment steps
in a beaker
Allows operator to test the effect of
different coagulant dosages or of different
coagulants

Unit Processes in Conventional

Surface Water Treatment
Weve

covered

Sedimentation
Coagulation/flocculation

Coming

up!

Filtration
Disinfection
Removal

of Dissolved Substances

Conventional Surface Water

Treatment
Raw water
Filtration

Screening
Alum
Polymers

sludge
Coagulation

sludge
Cl2

Disinfection

Flocculation

Storage

Sedimentation

Distribution

sludge

Filtration
Slow

sand filters
Diatomaceous earth filters
Membrane filters
Rapid sand filters (Conventional Treatment)

Slow Sand Filtration

First

filters to be used on a widespread basis

Fine sand with an effective size of 0.2 mm
Low flow rates (10 - 40 cm/hr)
Schmutzdecke (_____
____) forms on top
filter cake
of the filter
causes

high head loss

must be removed periodically
Used

without coagulation/flocculation!

Diatomaceous Earth Filters

Diatomaceous earth (DE) is made of the silica
skeletons of diatoms
DE is added to water and then fed to a special
microscreen
The DE already on the microscreen strains particles
and DE from the water
The continuous DE feed prevents the gradually
thickening DE cake from developing excessive head
loss
Was seriously considered for Croton Filtration Plant

Membrane Filters
Much

like the membrane filters used to

enumerate coliforms
much

greater surface area

Produce

very high quality water (excellent

particle removal)
Clog rapidly if the influent water is not of
sufficiently high quality
More expensive than sand and DE filters

Rapid Sand Filter

(Conventional US Treatment)

Size
(mm)

Anthracite

Influent

Drain
Effluent

Sand
Gravel

Specific Depth
Gravity (cm)

0.70

1.6

30

0.45 - 0.55

2.65

45

5 - 60

2.65

45

Wash water

Particle Removal Mechanisms in

Filters
Transport
Molecular diffusion
Inertia
Gravity
Interception

Attachment
Straining
Surface forces

Filter Design

Filter media
silica sand and anthracite coal
smaller particles
non-uniform media will stratify with _______
at the top

Flow rates

2.5 - 10 m/hr

Backwash rates
set to obtain a bed porosity of 0.65 to 0.70
typically 50 m/hr

Backwash
Wash

Anthracite

Influent

Drain
Effluent

Sand

water is
treated water!
WHY?
Only clean water
should ever be on
bottom of filter!

Gravel
Wash water

Disinfection
Disinfection:

operations aimed at killing or

inactivating pathogenic microorganisms
____________
Ideal disinfectant
Toxic to pathogens
_______________
Not toxic to humans
_______________
Fast rate of kill
_______________
Residual protection
_______________
Economical
_______________

Disinfection Options

Chlorine
chlorine gas Poisonous gas risk of a leak
sodium hypochlorite (bleach)

Ozone
Irradiation with Ultraviolet light
Sonification
Electric Current
Gamma-ray irradiation

Chlorine
First large-scale chlorination was in 1908 at the
Boonton Reservoir of the Jersey City Water
Works in the United States
Chlorine
Widely used in the US
oxidizes organic
matter
Typical dosage (1-5 mg/L)

variable, based on the chlorine demand

goal of 0.2 mg/L residual after 10 minutes

Trihalomethanes (EPA primary standard is 0.1

Pathogen/carcinogen tradeoff
mg/L)

Chlorine Reactions
Charges

+1 -2 +1

-1

Cl2 + H2O H+ + HOCl + ClHOCl H+ + OCl The sum of HOCl and OCl- is called the
free chlorine
____
______ residual
_______
HOCl is the more effective disinfectant
Therefore chlorine disinfection is more
effective at ________
pH
low
HOCl and OCl- are in equilibrium at pH 7.5

EPA Pathogen Inactivation

Requirements
SDWA

requires 99.9% inactivation for

Giardia and 99.99% inactivation of viruses
Giardia is more difficult to kill with
chlorine than viruses and thus Giardia
inactivation determines the CT
Concentration x Time

EPA Credits for Giardia

Inactivation
Treatment type
Credit
Conventional Filtration
99.7%
Direct Filtration
99%
Disinfection
f(time, conc., pH, Temp.)

Disinfection CT Credits
To get credit for 99.9% inactivation of Giardia:

Contact time (min)

chlorine
pH 6.5
pH 7.5
(mg/L) 2C
10C
2C 10C
0.5
300
178
430
254
1
159
94
228
134

NYC
CT?
Kensico
Delaware Pipeline
21.75 km long
5.94 m diameter
peak hourly flow
= 33 m3/s

volume =603,000 m3
5 hour residence time!
Hillview
3.4 x 106 m3

NYC CT Problem
Hillview

Reservoir is an open reservoir

Should the chlorine contact time prior to arrival
at Hillview count?
Giardia contamination from Upstate
Reservoirs will be decreased, but
recontamination at Hillview is
possible

Ozone
Widely

used in Europe
O3 is chemically unstable
Must be produced on site
More expensive than chlorine (2 - 3 times)
Typical dosages range from 1 to 5 mg/L
Often followed by chlorination so that the
residual
chlorine can provide a protective _______

Removal of Dissolved
Substances (1)
Aeration

(before filtration)

oxidizes

iron or manganese in groundwater

oxidized forms are less soluble and thus
precipitate out of solution
removes hydrogen sulfide (H2S)
Softening

(before filtration)

to remove Ca+2 and Mg+2

usually not necessary with surface waters
used

Removal of Dissolved
Substances (2)

Activated Carbon (between filtration and

disinfection)
extremely adsorbent material
used to remove organic contaminants
spent activated carbon can be regenerated with
superheated steam

Reverse Osmosis
semi-permeable membrane allows water molecules
to pass, but not the larger ions and molecules
primarily used for desalination
also removes organic materials, bacteria, viruses,
and protozoa

Conventional Surface Water

Treatment
Raw water
Filtration

Screening
Alum
Polymers

sludge
Coagulation

sludge
Cl2

Disinfection

Flocculation

Storage

Sedimentation

Distribution

sludge

Summary

Cryptosporidium Oocyst

Vt

p 1040 kg/m 3
w 999 kg/m
g 9.81 m/s 2
d 4x10 6 m

Vt

4x10

d 2 g p w
18

m 9.81 m/s 2 1040 kg/m 3 999 kg/m 3

3 kg

181.14x10

sm
2

Vt 3.14 x10 7 m/s

Vt 2.7 cm/day

Reynolds Number Check

R

Vd

3.14 x10
R

m/s 4 x10 6 m 999kg/m 3

3 kg
1.14x10
sm

R = 1.1 x 10-6

R<<1 and therefore in Stokes Law range

Diatomaceous Earth

Clay

DE