KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

TITLE: W5- Coagulation & Flocculation

THEORY: Coagulation and flocculation using jar testing is a method of creating a complete water treatment process. Some solid portion in water surface cannot settle by itself thus coagulant is needed in the test to make it removed by the process of coagulation followed by flocculation and then sedimentation.

In the process, small particles bind together in the water into larger and heavier compact mass which settle out relatively quickly. The larger particles are known as flocs. The floc will settle down from water surface quickly in the beaker in order to remove the majority of turbidity of water (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000).

Turbidity is an opaque and cloudy appearance of water caused by small particles suspended therein. Water with slight or no turbidity is clear and vice versa. The maximum allowable level of turbidity in water is 0.5 NTU and the recommended level is about 0.1 NTU (Nephelometric Turbidity Units) (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000).

Figure 1: Turbid wastewater sample in lab W5 Floc can be defined as the end product of a well-regulated coagulation or flocculation process in water which the majority of the turbidity has been
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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

collected and formed into floc, then settle out in the sedimentation basin. The best floc size is 0.1 to 3 mm. Larger floc may does not settle and is easy to breakup in the flocculation basin. However, floc which is too small also may not settle too (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000).

Figure 2: Floc formed of sample of lab W5 Many factors affecting the results of the test such as coagulant dose which is alum, the pH, period of reaction and energy supplied from the stirrer device. It includes the adjustment of amount of treatment chemicals which added to samples of water in the beaker. The sample stirred in order to produce the formation, development and settlement of floc can be watched by eyesight in the full-scale treatment plant (Coagulation and Flocculation, n.d.).

A series of tests perform to compare the effects of different amounts of flocculation agents at different pH values to determine the right size of flocs (based on appendix C of KNS 3621 Lab Manual) for particular water in the beaker. The right size of floc depends upon the systems filter dimensions and other considerations.

KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

INTRODUCTION: Coagulation and flocculation can be done for treatment plant. Different dosages of coagulants are tested using a jar test, which removes solid particles in the treatment plant or water sample.

It is a step by step process which involves the adding of coagulant to the water sample and mixing the water to completely dissolve the coagulant in the water. Then the water is mixed more slowly for a longer time period, constituting an imitation of the flocculation basin conditions and allowing the forming floc particles to cluster together. Finally, the mixer is stopped and the floc is allowed to settle out, as it would in the sedimentation beaker.

Figure 3: Steps of coagulation and flocculation processes

(Source: http://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/env110/lesson4.htm) During coagulation, the coagulant neutralized the electrical charges of the particles in the water to allow the particles to come closer to each other and lastly form large clumps. The flocculation will take place. It is a process of gentle mixing to bring the fine particles which formed by coagulation into contact with each other therefore form floc (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000). The chemistry of coagulation and flocculation is first and foremost based on electricity, the behavior of negative and positively charged particles due to their attraction and repulsion, i.e. like charges repel each other while opposite charges attract each other.
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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

As all knows, most particles dissolved in water have a negative charge so they tend to repel each other. Also, due to most coagulant will neutralize the negative charges on the particles; hence they will neutralize the turbidity particles to prevent those particles from repelling each other. Consequently, coagulants tend to be positively charged so that they are attracted to the negative particles in the water. In addition, the amount of coagulant which should be added to the water will depend on the zeta potential, which is a measurement of the magnitude of electrical charge surrounding the colloidal particles. If the zeta potential is large, then more coagulants will be needed (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000). After that, the combination of positive and negative charge results in neutral charge or can be said as lack of charge. As a result, the particles no longer repel each other. Then, van der Waals force is taking place to attract the particles which without or lack of charges weakly together in nature. When there are enough particles joined together, they form floc and will settle out of the water (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000).

Figure 4: Attraction of positive and negative charges

Figure 5: Floc formed

(Source: http://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/env110/lesson4_2.htm)

KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

Moreover, this test is probably the most useful laboratory test too. Jar test may perform to remove small suspended particles typically found in groundwater. How often the jar tests are performing depends on the type of source water. Surface water plants, in contrast, tend to treat water with a high turbidity which is susceptible to sudden changes in water

quality. Operators at these plants will perform jar tests frequently, especially after rains, to adjust the coagulant dosage and deal with the changing source water turbidity (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000).

In addition to remove turbidity from the water, coagulation and flocculation is beneficial in other ways. The process removes many bacteria which are suspended in the water and can be used to remove color from the water (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000).

Another important reason to perform jar testing is to save money. One of the common problems in water treatment is overfeeding or overdosing, especially with coagulants. This may not hurt the quality of water, but it can cost a lot of money. One of the easiest things an operator can do for optimization of the plant is jar testing, and jar testing is a must when looking at best available technologies (Zane Satterfield, 2005).

OBJECTIVE: To determine the optimum dose of coagulant using jar test method with adding different dosage of alum solution to six samples of beaker from A to F.

KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

APPARATUS: a) Jar tester apparatus b) Burette c) Beakers d) Pipette e) Analytical balance f) Magnetic stirrer

g) PH meter h) Turbidimeter i) j) Distilled water Alum stock solutions

k) Sulfuric acid l) Natrium hydroxide

PROCEDURE: 1) Alum stock solution was prepared by dissolving 2.5 g aluminium sulphate (Al(SO4)3) into 1000 ml of distilled water. Each 1.0 ml of this solution is equal to 5.0 ppm when added to 500 ml of water sample. 2) Each of 6 one liter beakers was marked as A to F. 3) Then, each beakers was filled with 500 ml of wastewater sample that provided by assistant. 4) The initial pH and turbidity of the water sample was measured by using pH meter and turbidimeter.

KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

Figure 6: pH meter

Figure 7: Turbidimeter

5) Each beaker was put on a magnetic stirrer and alum solution was added according to the dosage below: Beaker Dosage (ppm) Volume (ml) A 0 0 B 50 10 C 75 15 D 100 20 E 125 25 F 150 30

6) Two different burettes were filled in with sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and natrium hydroxide (NaOH) respectively for pH correction purpose. 7) pH of each beaker was checked and either H2SO4 or NaOH was titrated slowly to each beaker so that the pH was fixed to 6.50.05.

Figure 8: Titration to adjust pH value

8) The beakers were placed in the jar tester and the stirrers all were started on a fast speed of 100 rpm for 1 minute. This is to ensure the dispersion of the coagulant throughout the sample.

KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

9) The stirrer speed was reduced to 60 rpm to allow flocculation to take place.

Figure 9: Jar tester

10) The size and appearance of the floc formed were noted by referring Appendix C. 11) The stirring was stop after 10 minutes and the floc was allowed to settle for 30 minutes.

Figure 10: Settle of floc

12) pH and turbidity of the supernatant (the clear liquid above the solids) of each beaker was determined.

Figure 11: Taking upper layer of clear water sample

13) Graph of turbidity versus coagulant dosage was plotted.

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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

RESULT: Water sample pH Water sample turbidity : 6.90 : 21 NTU

Table 1: Parameters of Wastewater sample tested Beaker Parameter A Alum dosage (ppm) Alum volume (ml) Initial Ph Adjusted Ph Final Ph Floc size Turbidity (NTU) 0 0 6.80 6.47 5.57 A 13 B 50 10 6.70 6.52 4.20 E 9 C 75 15 7.46 6.49 3.97 D 3 D 100 20 6.94 6.52 3.98 D 2 E 125 25 7.24 6.53 4.05 E 1 F 150 30 7.20 6.54 3.97 D 1

Turbidity versus Alum Dosage

14 12 Turbidity (NTU) 10 8 6 4 2 0 0 25 50 75 Alum Dosage (ppm) 100 125 150

Figure 12: Graph of Turbidity vs. Alum Dosage

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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

Calculation: To convert dosage of alum from the unit of ppm into ml; Since 1.0 ml = 5.0 ppm, For example of Beaker B: Alum dosage (ppm) / 5 = 50/5 = 10 ml

The same calculation was continued for other beakers.

DISCUSSIONS: 1) What are other chemical or material that can be used as coagulant replacing alum? Alum can be replaced by aluminium coagulants and iron coagulants. The aluminium coagulants are aluminium sulphate, aluminium chloride, aluminium chlorohydrate, sodium aluminate, polyaluminium chloride, polyaluminium silicate chloride, polyaluminium sulphate chloride, and polyaluminium chloride with organic polymers while iron coagulants are ferric chloride sulphate, ferric chloride sulphate, polyferric sulphate and ferric salts with organic polymers. Besides that, there are some other chemicals can used as coagulants such as hydrated lime and magnesium carbonate. Aluminum and iron coagulants can be effectively used as they are able to form multi-charged polynuclear complexes with better adsorption characteristics. Also, the nature of the complexes formed may be controlled by the pH of the system. For instance, when metal coagulants are added to water, the metal ions, i.e. Al and Fe, will hydrolyze rapidly forming a series of metal hydrolysis species. The

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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

efficiency of rapid mixing, the pH, and the coagulant dosage determine which hydrolysis species is effective for wastewater treatment (IWA Water Wiki, n.d.).

2) What are the optimum doses of alum for this experiment? From the graph of Turbidity against coagulant dosage, the optimum dose of alum for this experiment is 130 ppm which means the water is the cleanest at the point.

3) Comment on your result.

Turbidity versus Alum Dosage

14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 0 25 50 75 100 125 150 Alum Dosage (ppm) Turbidity (NTU)

Figure 12: Graph of Turbidity vs. Alum Dosage From the plotted graph of Turbidity against coagulant dosage, the graph line has shown it curves downward and the lowest point of curve is where the water is the most clean by adding 130 ppm dosage of alum solution into the sample. 1 NTU of value of turbidity at the points of 125 ppm and 150 ppm is showing the optimum dose of alum is in the range of them. If the added dose of alum is lesser than 125 ppm, the value of turbidity will increase. And if the added dose of alum is more than 150 ppm, the value of turbidity also will increase. Therefore, when no dose of alum is added into beaker A, the value of turbidity is the highest.

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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

Comparing floc size among 6 beakers, sample in beaker A has smallest size which is 0.3-0.5 mm as no alum added in to form floc. Samples in beaker C, D and F have similar size of floc which is 1.0-1.5mm while samples in beaker B and E also have similar size of floc which is1.5-2.25 mm. Coagulant serves its purpose to form floc from dirt in water sample and make floc size become larger, tougher and denser along the time. As the floc is formed, it will settle quickly when the sample is left undisturbed. The obtained result is inaccurate as the graph is not perfect curve. The original sample is not shaken well before pour into beakers. Therefore, certain beaker has more turbidity compared to others. Besides that, there is living organism which is small shrimp in 3 beakers that disturbing the floc which already settled at bottom of beaker. The pH also must be adjusted to in the range 6.50.05 so that the reaction of alum and water sample can be at optimum potential. Thus, adjusted pH for each beaker has to be consistent so that the result is comparable.

4) Discuss other factors that need to be considered in coagulation and flocculation processes. There are several factors that need to be considered in coagulation and flocculation process such as turbidity, suspended solids, temperature, pH, cationic and anionic composition and concentration, duration and degree of agitation during coagulation and flocculation, dosage and nature of the coagulant (cvcamp, 2007). Water temperature can affect rate of chemical reaction when the sample is added in with alum. Higher the water temperature, rate of chemical reaction in the sample increases and the coagulation becomes more effective. Lower the water temperature will lower down the rate of chemical reaction as the reaction has less energy to take place. Degree of agitation is also an important factor in coagulation and flocculation. If the speed of the stirring process is too fast, the floc particles will be sheared or broken apart causing an increase in turbidity (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000). If the speed is too slow, then short-circuiting may occur or
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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

flocculation process will be shortened incompletely. At optimum speed, coagulant fully spreads in the water and flocs are formed by coagulant and its size gets larger slowly until suspended solid in water fully forms into flocs. Besides that, water pH is also needed to be considered. Effectiveness of a coagulant is relatively pH sensitive. Normally, for the water with color, low pH in between 4.4-6 will be better condition for coagulating with alum. Besides, formation of flocs is in better structure and stable at low pH too. Moreover, alkalinity in water is also an important factor in coagulation process. Alkalinity is necessary to be present in water to provide anions such as (OH) for forming insoluble compounds to separate them out from dissolved in water. Alkalinity could be found naturally or has to be added in alkaline chemical such as hydroxides, carbonates, or bicarbonates. Usually the ratio would be 1 part alum to 0.5 parts alkalinity added in water for proper coagulation (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000). Moreover, time plays important role in the processes as well. Proper mixing and detention times are very important (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000). If detention time is too short, probably mixing becomes improper as coagulant is not fully mixed with water. It causes not all of solid in water form into flocs. If detention time is too long, it causes the processes taken too long time and is ineffective. On the other hand, zeta potential of particles in water also affects the effective of coagulation and flocculation process. Zeta potential is the charge at the margin of the colloidal turbidity particle and the water surrounding the particles (Mountain Empire Community College, 2000). The higher the charge will be causing stronger repulsion between the turbidity particles and less effective in the coagulation process. Thus, removal or reduction of zeta potential is necessary to increase effectiveness of coagulation. Higher coagulant dose would be needed for higher zeta potential in water. Besides, an effective coagulation would be perfect in reducing the zeta potential charge to almost zero.

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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

CONCLUSIONS: The optimum dose used is depending on the type of sources water as it varies in turbidity, pH and other factors. From obtained result, the optimum dose of alum coagulant for the sample is 130 ppm or 26 ml where it results in lowest turbidity in water.

RECOMMENDATION: 1. The size of all 6 beakers should be made sure that is same in dimension. 2. All the apparatus especially beakers are needed to be washed with distilled water to make sure that no solid stuck on apparatus which would affect the result. 3. After flocculation process is done, the magnetic stirrer must be taken out gently and carefully so that to reduce disturbance to floc formed and settled in the beaker. 4. The pH meter is needed to clean with distilled water before and after test the pH of each sample. 5. Sulphuric acid must be made sure that is titrating slowly into each beaker to get the pH in the range 6.50.05. 6. The turbidimeter must be made sure that is washed with distilled water before use to avoid disturbance in reading. All beakers must be made sure that are not shaken to avoid inaccuracy or disturbance in taking readings of final pH and final turbidity of sample

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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

REFERENCES: Coagulation and Flocculation (n.d.). Lab experiment: Jar test. Retrieved 12 February 2011, from

http://ocw.tudelft.nl/fileadmin/ocw/courses/DrinkingWaterTreatment1/res00 080/embedded/!436f6167756c6174696f6e20616e6420666c6f6363756c617 4696f6e202d206a61722074657374.pdf cvcamp (2007, January 1). Water Treatment - Coagulation. Retrieved February 13, 2011, from Water Treatment:

http://www.ce.memphis.edu/1112/notes/water_treatment/water_treatment_p art_2_coagulation.pdf IWA Water Wiki (n.d.). Coagulation and Flocculation in Water and Wastewater Treatment: The coagulants. Retrieved 13 February 2011 from

http://www.iwawaterwiki.org/xwiki/bin/view/Articles/CoagulationandFlocc ulationinWaterandWastewaterTreatment KNS 3621 Lab Manual (2011). Department of Civil Engineering, UNIMAS. Mountain Empire Community College (2000). Jar test. Retrieved 12 February 2011 from

http://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/ENV115/coagulation.htm Mountain Empire Community College (2000). Lesson 4: Coagulation and flocculation: Part 2: Chemistry. Retrieved 12 February 2011 from http://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/env110/lesson4_2.htm Mountain Empire Community College (2000). Lesson 4: Coagulation and flocculation. Retrieved 12 February 2011 from

http://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/env110/lesson4.htm Mountain Empire Community College (2000). Lesson 4: Coagulation and flocculation. Retrieved 12 February 2011 from

http://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/env110/Lesson4_print.htm

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KNS 3621 Civil Engineering Laboratory 6 Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sarawak ________________________________________________________________________

Zane Satterfield, P. E. (2005). Jar testing. The National Environmental Services Center, 5(1). Retrieved 12 February 2011, from

http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/ndwc/articles/ot/SP05/TB_jartest.pdf

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