THE DEVELOPMENT OF DISSOLVED AIR

FLOTATION IN THE TREATMENT OF POTABLE

WATER AND ITS RELEVANCE TO THE NEW
ZEALAND WATER INDUSTRY
P.J. Harvey, Development Director, Purac Ltd

blanket, lamella and conventional sedimentation

ABSTRACT
Over the last 30 years dissolved air flotation,
DAF, has become recognised as the leading process
to pretreat certain waters particularly impounded,
coloured, soft waters prone to algal blooms. The
compact nature of the technology also makes it
particularly appropriate for works that have to be
enclosed or located in restricted locations. The
technology has been adopted throughout
Scandinavia, the UK and more recently the North
American and Asian markets. In many respects the
underlying technology and loading rates have not
changed significantly over the 30 years period.
Recent work shows that the process can be
intensified to provide even smaller plant footprints
KEYWORDS
Dissolved air flotation, flotation, water
treatment, clarification, DAF, flocculation
1. INTRODUCTION
Dissolved air flotation for potable water
treatment became popular in Scandinavia in the
1960’s. The benefits of the process were its
compact nature, an ability to treat cold, soft
coloured waters and the fact that polymer addition
was not required. In the early 1970’s the process
was introduced to the UK once again primarily for
the treatment of impounded waters, similar to the
Scandinavian applications and particularly for
waters that suffered from algal blooms. The Water
Research Association at Medmenham UK, now the
WRC, took an interest in the process and workers
like Packham, Richards, Melbourne, Rees & Zabel
produced some excellent reviews and work in the
subsequent period. Contractors providing the
process used both their own proprietary or licensed
designs from the WRC. Initially in the UK a
conservative water industry took time to fully
appreciate the value of the process with power
requirement and plant complexity cited as major
problems for the process. However, over the next
10 or so years the process became the accepted
norm for many situations, replacing various sludge
systems. There are now in excess of 100 flotation
works in the UK.
Over this period, however, there were no major
advances in the technology. Mechanical systems
became more robust and reliable, the process
adapted well to the “PLC” era and the industry as a
whole became comfortable with DAF. One radical
development was Thames Water’s COCODAFTM
system, a combined flotation filter which offers
some benefits with respect to plant footprint.
The UK water industry to a large extent finished
its water treatment works program at the end of
1995 in accordance with the European Union
timetable. Further optimization and process
intensification of DAF is now driven by other
markets, for example the USA. Here the surface
water treatment rule is providing a real impetus for
improvement.
2. DISCUSSION
2.1 BASIC PROCESS
The basis process is shown diagrammatically in
Figure 1, with the main component parts identified.
Figure 1: Process Schematic
2.1.1 FLOCCULATION STAGE
Treatment chemicals are generally flash mixed
as appropriate into the flow prior to the flocculation
stage. Until recently flocculation has typically
comprised two stages with total retention times of
20 to 30 minutes. There are some examples of three
stages systems and also plants with lower retention
times. On occasions it has been found necessary to
dose chemicals between stages for instance:
• polymer between stages 1 & 2 on a plant
removing high iron content from a goundwater
• potassium permanganate between stages 1 & 2
on a plant removing manganese
• powdered activated carbon between stages 1 &
2 on a plant with a periodic taste problem
Conventional wisdom and experience was that
the energy for flocculation should be tapered in the
range from 70 to 10G to promote the requisite floc
growth. This view is no longer considered optimal
and a more even higher G level is proposed along
with shorter residence times. The best type of floc
for DAF are small, robust flocs that will not shear
downstream in the process either during transport to
the flotation vessel or in the contact zone. This is
discussed further below.
2.1.2 CONTACT ZONE
In many ways this is the most critical area where
we wish to achieve bubble-floc attachment without
floc shear. Air microbubbles for flotation are
produced by releasing the dissolved air through an
injection device either needle valves or nozzles.
Typically 6 to 10% of the main flow is recycled at
500-600kPa giving an air input of some 6 to 10 gms
air/m3 of the main flow depending on water
temperature. The average bubble size produced is
some 40 micron (range typically 10 to 100 micron)
and this results in the order of 2.5x1011 bubbles/m3.
The conflicting requirements of the injection
device and assembly are:
• reduction of high water pressure, resulting in
high velocities and allowing the formation of
microbubbles
• introduction of microbubbles into the main
flow without promoting high shear or
turbulence that breaks down floc
• prevention of any significant coalescence of air
microbubbles
Many problems with DAF plant have been due
to the production of microflocs that cannot be
removed by either flotation or the subsequent
filtration stage. Microflocs can occur if either the
flocculation process and/or the injection device do
not function satisfactorily. Some waters are more
prone to this than others. Sometimes a poor
injection arrangement has been overcome, or
masked, by the addition of polymer to the
flocculation stage.
2.1.3 FLOTATION ZONE
Flotation tanks can be circular or rectangular the
latter being the more common for potable water
treatment. Unit cell sizes have varied from 1 to 225
m2. Tank width is generally restricted to 7-8 m
when surface sludge scrapers are employed and
lengths of up to 20 m have been used. In practice
length to width ratios are 2 to 2.5 :1. The tank depth
is generally 2 to 3 m often simply to fit the
hydraulic profile or promote constructional
simplicity. More work is required on flotation tank
geometry as discussed below.
2.1.4 RECYCLE SYSTEM
There are many systems for the production of
dissolved air for water treatment, the process itself
in mass transfer terms is simple to achieve. For
potable water treatment where the recycle flow is
essentially solids free and power efficiency is at a
premium then packed saturators have become the
norm in the UK. Overall power input for DAF is
typically 21 to 25 kW/Ml of which the majority is
attributable to the pressurized recycle flow. A
packed saturator will achieve > 90% saturation
efficiency while the more simple eductor,
impingement and spray designs fall well short of
this value, typically 70 to 80%. For smaller
package water treatment and most wastewater
applications simple non-packed units are eminently
suitable.
All Operators are interested in reducing power
costs. By improving injection valve or nozzle
performance water quality can be improved and
power cost reduced. Figure 2 shows the results of
nozzle improvements at an Anglian Water site in the
UK which sought to minimise nozzle exit velocities
and turbulence. The resultant savings on this works
equate to some $20,000/annum on this 40,000
m3/day works.
Figure 2: Effect of Nozzle Design on Plant Performance
 This provides a step change in recycle rate which
coarsely follows the plant main flow.

Also algorithms have been developed that vary

the saturator pressure between typically 400 and
600 kPa as the main flow and also temperature
changes. This is perhaps the most common
approach as it is relatively inexpensive to provide.

It is also possible to provide motorised needle

valve assemblies which continuously vary the
recycle rate to maintain a recycle percentage set
2.1.5 SLUDGE REMOVAL AND point. These systems are very common on
TREATMENT wastewater works for tertiary applications where
The floated sludge at the surface will reach a their ability to self compensate for valve blockage
solids content of 5 to 6%w/w if allowed to due to the solids in the recycle stream is a real
accumulate. However it is important that when the advantage.
sludge is removed it does not cause major spikes in
floated water turbidity. The three common ways to The other main aspect of the process to control is
remove surface sludge are given in Table 1. sludge removal. Sludge scrapers and flippers tend to
run continuously at a slow rate while decant
Table 1: Floated Sludge Removal Systems arrangement are initiated on cumulative plant
throughput, perhaps combined with inlet turbidity.
Typical Sludge Scrapers can be set up to run intermittently to
Concentration maximise sludge thickness however the floated
Method %w/w Comment water turbidity spike during the periodic scrape may
Sludge skimmer 2.5 to 4 Can be directly be unacceptable.
dewatered. Does
not flow easily. Original concerns over DAF plant complexity
Most expensive, have long been overcome. In the UK fully
most maintenance. automated three stage treatment works will
Sludge Flipper 1.5 to 2.5 Generally flows normally be manned on a one shift/day, 5 day/week
easily.
basis. Weekends may be covered with a brief visit.
Intermediate cost
and maintenance.
Sludge Decant 0.5 to 1.5 Raise or lower 2.2 TYPICAL APPLICATIONS AND
sludge over weirs. PERFORMANCE
Simple, least
expensive. 2.2.1 NEW WORKS
Perhaps now the first choice process for soft,
The choice of system depends on the plant coloured impounded waters particularly when algal
capacity, the overall sludge handling flowsheet and blooms are a problem. Being a high rate process it is
sludge disposal route. ideal for works where space is a premium or when
planning restrictions dictate the plant building needs
2.1.6 PROCESS CONTROL to be camouflaged or similar. A good example is the
An original criticism of the process was that it is Holmbridge works for Yorkshire Water which is
difficult to maintain a set percentage recycle flow as situated in a national parkland. Completed in 1994
the main process flow varies, to minimise power this 35,000m3/day plant has four DAF streams, two
costs. However the process can be taken on and off stages of filtration and is situated underground.
line very quickly, typically 5 to 10 minutes, which
means the number of flotation streams on line can
be optimised with plant throughput. It is also
possible to change the recycle flow to a certain Photograph 1: Holmbridge Water Treatment Works -
Construction Stage
extent through the control system. In plants with set
nozzles or similar devices, multiple banks can be
installed and switched “in and out” as the main flow
changes.

Photograph 2: Holmbridge Water Treatment Works -
Internal View
Being a high rate process means that road
transportable steel DAF plants provide both a high
unit throughput and a fast track solution to drought
or emergency needs. For example a 35m2 unit, road
transportable in the UK, can provide typically
10,000m3/day.
Photograph 3: Drought Relief Package
Plant
A well operated DAF plant will typically
provide water with the following quality:
• True colour; < 5 Hazen
• Turbidity; < 1 FTU
• Residual coagulant; 0.5mg/1
• Algal removal; variable, typically
90%+, up to 99.5%
With respect to Cryptosporidium early work
indicated that removal of ooscysts is similar for
DAF and sedimentation at 1.5 to 3 log, provided
coagulation is effective (HMSO, 1995). More
recently Edzwald and Kelley 1998 have reported
superior performance of DAF compared to
sedimentation although more plant scale operating
data is required.
2.2.2 PLANT UPRATING & CONVERSIONS
The process has been adopted in many situations
to upgrade existing works to improve quality,
increase throughput or both. Many of the older
direct filtration plants in the UK have been uprated
by DAF pretreatment with spectacular results,
extending the life of existing assets.
It is often possible to convert existing structures
from sedimentation to DAF. One interesting
conversion is the Metropolitan Utilities Corporation
plant at Ipoh in Malaysia (Beaumont, 1994). Here
existing sedimentation tanks where converted at a
low cost to increase the output from the
pretreatment plant from 91,000 to 275,000m3/day as
demand increased. This was a challenging project
that resulted in the worlds largest potable water
flotation basins, 225 m2, treatment treating a direct
river extraction with inlet turbidities up to 350NTU.
Polymer is provided on this plant and average
floated turbidities of 2NTU are achieved compared
with 3.5NTU from the parallel sedimentation
process.
2.2.3 FLOTATION FILTERS
Combined flotation filters are offered by several
companies in the UK, PURAC, Paterson Candy Ltd.
and Krofta, the original PURAC FlofilterTM patent
being filed in 1967. In these filters the flotation
zone is directly above the filter bed so the plant
footprint is considerably reduced. The Flofilter
package units became very popular in the UK
during the 1976 drought and some of these units are
still in operation 22 years on.
More recently the Paterson Candy Ltd.
COCODAFTM has been applied at several sites in
the UK including the 200MLD works at Walton for
Thames Water. This innovative countercurrent
system is described by Eades et al (1997).
The loading rate that can be applied to the
combined process is limited so as not to drag air
bubbles down into the filter bed. At low
temperatures, < 5C, this essentially limits the
loading to ca 15 m3/m2/hr.
Also care has to be taken with respect to the
process chemistry and choice of coagulant. Certain
waters with high natural iron, aluminium and
manganese levels may require pH adjustment
between the DAF and filter stages especially if a
ferric based coagulant is used. This is not possible
with flotation filters.
2.3 PROCESS INTENSIFICATION
Prompted by potential for DAF in the USA and
international market, over the last 10 years many
academics and process companies have been
looking to intensify the overall DAF process. This is
particularly relevant for the larger drinking water
projects around the world that are adopting DAF as
the clarification stage, for example the Tai Po
1,200,000m3/day project in Hong Kong. As a result
the PURAC Group has co sponsored work at the
Universities of Massachusetts, Lund and
Gothenburg (Chalmers) with a view to achieving a
3 to 4 times process intensification of the
flocculation-flotation process.
It is important to remember that in practice we
are considering the overall integrated performance
of the water treatment process. Chemical mixing,
flocculation, DAF and filtration all interrelate to
provide the final water quality and ultimate plant
cost. Such interrelations need to be considered in
any development programme.
2.3.1 FLOCCULATION
It is now accepted that long flocculation
residence times with tapered G values designed to
produce large flocs is totally inappropriate for the
DAF process. With the right coagulation chemistry
robust , small, shear resistant flocs can be produced
at residence times as low as 5 minutes at
temperatures less than 5C. This has been
demonstrated in the laboratory, in pilot tests
(Valade et al, 1996) and is now being applied to full
scale plant.
Table 2: Effect of Flocculation Time on DAF
performance (Valade et al, 1996)
5 mins 10 mins
Flocculation Flocculation
Turbidity NTU Turbidity NTU
Raw Water 1.04 0.89
DAF Subnatant 1.01 0.80
Filter effluent 0.01 0.04
Temperature C 2.70 5.80
Coag. Fe mg/1 5.70 5.10
Note! Mixing intensity G=70sec-1
2.3.2 FLOTATION
One of the problems with the conventional DAF
process is that there becomes a loading rate at which
bubbles are removed with the subnatant. The
loading at which this occurs depends primarily upon
temperature and its effect on the water viscosity. If
air carries forward to the subsequent filtration stage
it will blind the filter bed causing a rapid headloss
development. There have been some full scale
plants that have suffered this problem, and
combined flotation filters are particularly prone.
In recent work, some of which has been reported
(Dahlquist, 1997), internal air removal devices have
been developed to overcome this problem. Such
devices potentially extend the loading rates that can
be applied to DAF beyond 40m3/m2/hr. The results
of this work are now being incorporated into full
scale plant design. A recent pilot study, as yet
unreported, at Newport News USA gave very
encouraging results. For this study certain
performance criteria were set:
• DAF subnatant < goal 0.5 NTU, accept
turbidity 1 NTU
• Filtrate turbidity < 0.1 NTU
• Unit Filter Run goal > 500m3/m2,
Volume UFRV; accept 200m3/m2
(to 2.4m headloss)
In all cases the flocculation time was ca 6 mins
at a G value of 70 and DAF loadings were 17, 22
and 44m3/m2/hr. At the base, 17m3/m2/hr, case all
project criteria were met. At the intermediate case
22m3/m2/hr, filtrate qualities were met, and the
internal air removal resulted in higher UFRV still in
excess of the 500 value. At the high loading,
44m3/m2/hr, while the internal air removal gave
superior results it did not meet project criteria
except for the filtrate turbidity.
We can conclude from this that at rates above
25m3/m2/hr some type of air removal will be
beneficial and at some point between 25 and
44m3/m2/hr the process may reach its current upper
limit. Work continues to extend the upper limit and
improve the internal air removal device.
To date the internal air removal system has
comprised lamella plates, structured packing or
similar. Figure 3 shows the general principle.
Patent applications have been filed. Further work is
being undertaken to optimise flotation tank
geometry by the study of internal flow patterns in
both laboratory and plant scale studies.
Figure 3: Internal Air Removal Concept
Table 3 shows the effect on plan area of a
conventional versus an intensified DAF process
design. A process intensification of 3 represents a
major capital cost saving plus potential for
upgrading existing plant.
Table 3: Potential of Process Intensification
Conventional Intensified
Flocculation Time Mins 20 5 Journal, 7-20.
DAF loading rate
m3/m2/hr 12 30
Plan area per 100m3/hr
(at 3m depth) 194 61
Process intensification 1 3.2
2.4 PROCESS POTENTIAL IN NEW
ZEALAND
To the Authors knowledge there are currently
two DAF plants in potable service in New Zealand
the 60,000 m3/day works at Wainuiomata, near
Wellington, and the recently installed 1,500m3/day
Port Chalmers plant for Dunedin City Council.
Recently there has also been both Tender and
Expression of Interest documentation in circulation
for a number of potential DAF schemes.
Both the nature of many impounded waters and
the size of potential treatment works in New
Zealand are very similar to the UK where DAF is
very widely used. Sources which previously may
have been treated by direct filtration alone are likely
now to include a pre-treatment stage. Existing
direct filtration works may also require upgrading to
meet performance criteria. Enhanced DAF
processes supplied as packages for smaller works or
as custom plant for the major schemes will
undoubtedly find a place in the market.
3. CONCLUSIONS
The process of dissolved air flotation has yet to
be fully optimised and further work is needed to
maximise loading rates, minimise power input,
reduce air carry over at high loadings and
streamline flotation tank hydraulic design. Such
work should be carried out as part of an integrated
approach to treatment considering both upstream
flocculation and downstream filtration optimisation
and performance.
The process will become more widely used
internationally particularly if optimised to reduce
whole life costs on the larger treatment works. The
process will also become more evident in the New
Zealand market for both new works and plant
upgrades.
4. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Author wishes to thank Tony Amato,
Technology Manager for Purac Ltd, for his
assistance in the preparation of this paper.
REFERENCES
Beaumont, F. (1994) ‘Use of dissolved air flotation
processes, case study at Parit treatment
works’. Malaysian Water Association
Dahlquist, J. (1997) ‘The state of DAF development
and applications to water treatment in
Scandinavia’. The Chartered Institute of
Water and Enviromental Management,
Dissolved Air Flotation, International
Conference, April 1997- London, 201-213
Eades, A, Jordan. D, and Scheidler, S. (1997)
‘Counter current dissolved air flotation
COCODAF’. The Chartered Institute of
Water and Enviromental Management ,
Dissolved Air Flotation, International
Conference, April 1997- London, 323-340
Edzwald, J. K. and Kelley, M. B. (1998) ‘Control
of Cryptosporidium; from reservoirs to
clarifiers to filters’. Wat. Sci. Tech. Vol. 37,
2, 1-8.
HMSO (1995) ‘Cryptosporidium in water supplies,
second report of the group of experts’.
Valade, M.T., Edzwald,J.K., Tobiason, J.E.,
Dalquist, J., Hedberg, T., and Amato, T.,
(1996) ‘Pretreatment effects on particle
removal by flotation and filtration’. JAWWA,
88 (12): 35-47