06-03-2020

WATER SUPPLY ENGINEERING

Dr. MANOJ K TIWARI
SCHOOL OF WATER RESOURCES, IIT KHARAGPUR

Module 07: Disinfection, Sludge Management and Advanced Water Treatment

Lecture 35: Disinfection Basics

 Need and Objectives of Disinfection

 Mechanisms and Methods for Disinfection
 Properties of Disinfectants
 Factors Affecting Disinfection
 Kinetics of Disinfection
 Ct Concept

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Typical Water Treatment Processes

Major/Minor Steps:
 Screening

 Aeration

 Coagulation and Flocculation

 Sedimentation

 Filtration

 Disinfection
 Advanced Treatment Image Source: http://greentotal.net/centralized-vs-point-of-use-treatment/

 Sludge Management

Disinfection in Surface Water and Groundwater Treatment Systems

One of the prime objectives of water treatment is the removal or inactivation of pathogenic micro-
organisms to prevent the spread of waterborne disease. Disinfection is the process to remove, deactivate or
kill pathogenic microorganisms, so that they are not infectious to humans and animals.

It is the “most important” treatment steps for both, surface waters as well as groundwater treatment.

Typical Surface Waters Treatment Scheme Typical Groundwater Treatment Scheme

Image Source: https://pure-h2o-learning.eu/units-of-leatning-outcomes/ulo3/358-chapter-7?showall=&start=3

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Water Related Diseases

 Water-borne diseases: infections spread through contaminated drinking water

 Water-washed diseases: diseases due to the lack of proper sanitation and hygiene

 Water-based diseases: infections transmitted through an aquatic invertebrate organism

 Water-related vector-borne diseases: transmitted by insects that depend on water for their propagation

Image Source:
https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/re
sources/envmanparta.pdf?ua=1

Need for Disinfection of Water

Pathogen Disease Caused  Microorganisms in water are most often associated with
Bacteria: several waterborne disease like typhoid, cholera, paratyphoid,
Anthrax anthrax bacillary dysentery, poliomyelitis etc.
Escherichia coli E. coli infection
Myobacterium tuberculosis  Conventional filtration and excess-lime softening (if used) may
tuberculosis
provide removal of microorganism only to a certain degree,
Salmonella salmonellosis, paratyphoid
but cannot not ensure the complete removal of disease-
Vibrio cholerae cholera
causing microbes.
Viruses:
Hepatitis Virus Hepatitis A  Therefore, additional treatment process, Disinfection, is
Polio Virus polio administered after filtration for the complete removal or
inactivation of harmful micro-organisms in water.
Parasites:
Cryptosporidium cryptosporidiosis  The treated water must meet the microbial contamination
Giardia lamblia giardiasis
standards set by the regulatory authorities.

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Disinfection verses Sterilization

 Disinfection is different from sterilization, which is the
complete destruction of all microorganisms found in
water.

 Sterilization is usually much more expensive and

unnecessary for water treatment which simply aims to
just ensure safety from the risk of waterborne disease.

 Disinfection (adequate cleanliness) does not ensure

the same security level as that of sterilization
(extreme cleanliness), and does not necessarily
inactivate all forms of microorganisms, for instance, Image Source: https://www.easybiologyclass.com/difference-between-sterilization-and-
disinfection-comparison-table/
bacterial spores.

Disinfection Objectives and Approaches

 Objective of disinfection is to produce microbially safe water by removing, inactivating or killing
pathogens. It primarily aims for safety from the risk of waterborne diseases.

 Approaches: Disinfection of water can be achieved by:

 Removal of pathogens: Filtering out all the pathogenic microorganisms

 Inactivation or killing: Destroying the cellular structure of the micro-organisms or disrupting

its metabolism, biosynthesis or ability to grow/reproduce.

o In the case of bacteria, inactivation describes the subsequent inability of the microorganism to
divide and form colonies.

o For viruses, inactivation measures the inability of the microorganism to form plaques in host cells.

o For protozoan Cryptosporidium oocysts, it measures the inability of the microorganism to multiply,
thereby preventing consequent infection of a host by Cryptosporidium.

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Disinfection Mechanisms
 Straining or physical removal by nano or finer-grade filtration

 Altering / destroying structures or functions of essential components within the pathogens

including Proteins (structural proteins, enzymes, transport proteins, etc), Nucleic acids (genomic
DNA or RNA, mRNA, tRNA, etc), and Lipids (lipid bi-layer membranes, other lipids)

 Alteration of cell permeability: Agents such as phenolic compounds and detergents destroys
the selective permeability of the membrane.

 Damage to cell wall: Radiation, heat and highly acidic and alkaline agents alter the
protoplasm.

 Inhibition of enzyme activity: Heat coagulates the cell protein, acids or bases denatures
proteins resulting in a lethal effect.

 Alteration of colloidal natute of protoplasm: Oxidizing agents alter the chemical arrangement
of the enzymes and deactivating them.

Typical Methods for Disinfection

 Physical methods: Filtration or Boiling

 Radiation methods: Ultrasonic, Electronic, or UV irradiation

 Chemical methods: Chlorination, Ozonation, or Other chemical agents

o The most common disinfectant used is chlorine, which is used in

different forms including Chlorine gas, Hypochlorite, Chloramines
and Chlorine dioxide.
Image Source: https://www.livpure.com/
o Other chemical agents which have been used for disinfection
include iodine, bromine, hydrogen peroxide, ozone, copper/silver
ions.

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Properties of an Ideal Disinfectant

 Broad spectrum: active against all microbes

 Fast kinetics: produces rapid inactivation

 Non-toxic; Non-flammable; Non-explosive

 Effective in the presence of interfering constituents

 Compatible with various materials/surfaces

 Stable for the intended exposure period

 Provides a residual, if desirable

 Easy to generate and apply

 Economical

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Properties of Common Disinfectants

 Free chlorine: Produces strong oxidant HOCl (hypochlorous acid) and OCl- (hypochlorite ion) in
water, which are stable and may provide a residual ensuring future protection as well. HOCl, which
is the more effective disinfectant of the two, dominates at low pH, while OCl- at higher pH.

 Chloramines: The disinfectants (mostly NH2Cl and some NHCl2) are weak oxidant, however provides
a stable residual.

 Chlorine dioxide, ClO2: Very strong oxidant but unstable (dissolved gas).

 Ozone, O3: Very strong oxidant, but provides no residual (too volatile, reactive)

 UV radiation: Very effective disinfectant that primarily damages nucleic acids. Works at low
intensity monochromatic radiation at 254 nm usually produced by low pressure mercury lamp, or
higher intensity polychromatic radiations produced by medium pressure mercury lamp.

 Boiling: Effective in killing microorganisms, but associated energy and environmental cost is high.
Also boiling does not leaves any residual protection.

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Factors Affecting Disinfection

 Microbe Types and their resistance to disinfectants:
 Vegetative bacteria like Salmonella, coliforms, etc. have low resistance
 Enteric viruses like coliphages, HAV, Noroviruses etc. have moderate resistance
 Bacterial and Fungal Spores, Protozoan, cysts, helminth ova, etc. [e.g. Cryptosporidium, Giardia lamblia cysts,
Ascaris lumbricoides ova], and Acid-fast bacteria like Mycobacterium sp. have high resistance
 Type of disinfectant and their mode of action:
 Strong oxidants like HOCl, OCl-, ClO2, O3 etc. oxidizes various protein sulfhydryl groups, alters membrane
permeability, and oxidize/denature nucleic acid components, etc.
 Weak oxidants like combined chlorine (Chloramines) denatures sulfhydryl groups of proteins
 Ultraviolet radiation primarily causes nucleic acid damage by thymidine dimer formation, strand breaks, etc.
 Water Quality: Suspended and dissolved matters, pH, ORP, Turbidity, Temperature, Hardness, Salts and Ions etc.
 Reactor Design, Mixing & Hydraulic Conditions: Plug flow (better kinetics) or Mixed reactor systems.

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Disinfection Kinetics
 Death of microorganisms is usually considered as the first order with respect to time
 Thus, the remaining number of viable microorganisms, N, decreases with time, t, according to:

dN/dt = -kN
where k is an empirical constant descriptive of the microorganism, pH and disinfectant used.
 Integrating with respect to time, and replacing limits (N = N0 at t = 0) yields:
ln(N/N0) = -kt or N = N0e-kt
 The is known as Chick’s Law, which assumes:
 All organisms are identical
 Death (inactivation) results from a first-order or “single-hit” reaction.
 Other models used to study disinfection kinetics (when not first-order):
 Multi-hit-hit or concave up: initial slow rate, increases over time
 Concave down or retardant kinetics: initial fast rate, decreases over time

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The Ct Concept
 The disinfection is usually not instantaneous, Inactivation of Cryptosporidium Oocysts in Water by Chemical Disinfectants
and inactivation is a function of time,
concentration of disinfectant (especially for
chemical disinfectants), pH and Temp.
 If pH and temperature variations are less,
inactivation typically increases with increased
exposure (or contact time), as well as
increased level (concentration) of disinfectant.
 Therefore, disinfection can be expressed at
the product of disinfectant concentration (C) C. parvum oocysts inactivated by low
and contact time (t). doses of UV radiation: <10 mJoules/cm2
Source: http://web.iitd.ac.in/~arunku/files/CEL795_Y13/Disinfection%20Part1.pdf

 This applies best when disinfection kinetics is

first order.

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WATER SUPPLY ENGINEERING

Dr. MANOJ K TIWARI
SCHOOL OF WATER RESOURCES, IIT KHARAGPUR

Module 07: Disinfection, Sludge Management and Advanced Water Treatment

Lecture 36: Chlorination

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 Chlorination for Disinfection

 Chlorine Reactions in Water
 Chlorine Demand
 Free Chlorine Residual and Combined Chlorine Residual
 Breakpoint Chlorination
 Types of Chlorination
 Issues with Chlorination: DBPs and Odour

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Chlorination for Disinfection

 The most common disinfection method involves addition of some form of chlorine or its
compounds such as chloramine or chlorine dioxide.
 Chlorine is a strong oxidant that rapidly kills many harmful micro-organisms, through:

 Oxidation of membrane-bound enzymes for transport and oxidative phosphorylation

 Oxidation of cytoplasmic enzymes

 Oxidation of cytoplasmic amino acids to nitrites and aldehydes

 Oxidation of nucleotide bases Chlorine, when added to water, reacts with

reduced state compounds present in the
 Chlorine substitution onto amino acids water, and further reacts with the water
itself. The chlorine reactions to water or
 DNA mutations and lesions nitrogenous compounds present in water
produces chlorine residual, which are able
to kill microorganisms in the water.

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Chlorine Reactions in Water: Chlorine Demand

 When chlorine enters water, it starts reacting with organic compounds and other reducing
agents such as hydrogen sulfide, ferrous ions, manganese ions, nitrite ions etc.
 The chlorine added usually first react with all such compounds (if present) in the water, before
forming any chlorine residuals.
 The amount of chlorine that is required (or consumed) for these reactions is termed the
‘Chlorine Demand.’ This can also be considered as the amount of chlorine needed before any
free chlorine can be produced.
 Sufficient quantity of chlorine must be added for disinfection, so that, after the chlorine
demand is met, there is adequate chlorine left to produce chlorine residuals in the water.
 Examples of these reactions:
o CH4 + Cl2  CH3Cl + HCl
o FeCl2 + Cl2  2 FeCl3 o CH2 = CH2 + Cl2  CH2Cl - CH2Cl
o H2S + 4Cl2 + 4 H2O  H2SO4 + 8 HCl o Cl2 + 2 KBr  2 KCl + Br2

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Chlorine Reactions in Water: Free Chlorine Residual

 Usually, after satisfying the “Chlorine Demand” of water, chlorine reacts with water to form
HOCl (hypochlorous acid) and OCl- (hypochlorite ions) in water. These are known as “Free
Chlorine Residuals” and have good disinfection abilities due to their strong oxidizing
potential.
 Chlorine may be added in the form of chlorine gas, hypochlorite, or chlorine dioxide.
 Chlorine gas is the most pure form of chlorine, but is difficult to handle in gaseous form as it
is toxic, heavy, corrosive, and an irritant. Usually, it is compressed into a liquid and stored in
metal cylinders.
Cl2 + H2O  HOCl + HCl HOCl ↔ H+ + OCl- (pH dependent)
 The interconversion of hypochlorous acid and hypochlorite ions are pH dependent, as HOCl
dominates at lower pH (<7.5), while OCl- dominates at higher pH (>7.4).
 Between the two, hypochlorous acid has much higher disinfection abilities than hypochlorite
ions. Therefore, disinfection with chlorine is more efficient at a low pH than at a high pH.

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Chlorine Reactions in Water: Free Chlorine Residual

Effect of pH and Temperature on Cl dissociation in water

Image Source: Gombas et al. (2017), in Journal of food protection 80(2):312-330; http://mimoza.marmara.edu.tr/~zehra.can/ENVE401/12.%20Disinfection.pdf

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Chlorine Reactions in Water: Hypochlorites

 Hypochlorites (also known as bleach) are less pure than chlorine gas, thus, are also less
dangerous. Further, they decompose in strength over time while in storage. Typically, these are
of three types - sodium hypochlorite, calcium hypochlorite, and commercial bleach:
 Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl): Usually comes in solution form, containing up to 12% chlorine.
 Calcium hypochlorite (Ca(OCl)2): Comes in both, liquid and solid (powder/granules) forms,
and contains around 65-70 % chlorine. This is also know as “HTH” (High Test Hypochlorite).
 Commercial Bleach: Commonly available in grocery stores in both liquid and powder forms,
with chlorine concentration ranging from under 10 % to over 40 %, depending on the brand.
 Disinfection through hypochlorites occurs similar to that with chlorine. However, the differences
lie in quantities to be used (due to different chlorine concentrations), and feeding, storage and
handling procedures.

Ca(OCl)2 + 2 H2O  HOCl + Ca(OH)2 NaOCl + H2O  HOCl + NaOH HOCl ↔ H+ + OCl-

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Chlorine Reactions in Water: Chloramines [Chloramination]

 Some plants use chloramines for disinfection of water. Chloramines are chlorine and nitrogen based
chemical compounds formed during a reaction between chlorine (Cl2) and ammonia (NH3). These are
produced when ammonia (either already present or added) reacts with free chlorine (HOCl or OCl-,
depending on the pH, ideal pH is 8.4) to produce Monochloramine (NH2Cl), which may then react with
more hypochlorous acid to form a Dichloramine (NHCl2), and subsequently Trichloramine (NCl3).
NH3 (aq) + HOCI  NH2Cl + H2O NH2Cl + HOCl  NHCl2 + H2O NHCl2 + HOCl  NCl3 + H2O
 The extent of these reactions depends on the pH of the medium. Organic chloramines can also be
formed during these reactions. Monochloramines and dichloramines can both be used as a disinfecting
agent (called “Combined Chlorine Residual”).
 Chloramines are weaker oxidant than free chlorine residuals, so have lesser disinfection potential.
Among chloramines, monochloramine has the highest disinfection abilities. These are effective at killing
majority of pathogenic bacteria and some protozoans, but are not very effective at killing viruses.
 However, chloramines are relatively more stable, so many times preferred as the disinfectant in the
distribution lines of water treatment systems.

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Chlorine Reactions in Water: Chloramines

Molecular Preferred pH Biocidating

Formula Name
Weight Value Effect
NH2Cl Monochloramine 52 >7 good
NHCl2 Dichloramine 85 4-7 tolerable
NCl3 Trichloramine 119 1-3 average
Organic
R-NHCl varies unknown bad
chloramines

 When chloramines are used as a disinfectant, ammonia is

added to chlorine treated water.
 Ammonia is added after chlorine, because this causes Ct
values to be lower than when ammonia is added primarily.

Source: Abdessemed, Ala. (2015). Combined chlorine degradation.; https://www.lenntech.com/processes/disinfection/chemical/disinfectants-chloramines.htm

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Chlorine Reactions in Water: Chlorine dioxide

o High solubility in water – 5 times of free chlorine
o High oxidative potentials – 2.63 times of free chlorine (only 20% at neutral pH)
o Effective at a higher pH than other forms of chlorination.

Chlorine dioxide is the most effective form of chlorination since it will kill
protozoans, Cryptosporidium, Giardia, and viruses that other systems may not kill. In addition,
chlorine dioxide oxidizes all metals and organic matter, converting the organic matter to carbon
dioxide and water. Chlorine dioxide can be used to remove sulfide compounds and phenolic tastes
and odors. Contrary to chlorine, chlorine dioxide does not react with ammonia nitrogen (NH3).

So why isn't chlorine dioxide used in all systems?

 Chlorine dioxide must be generated on site, which is a very costly process requiring a great deal
of technical expertise.
 Unlike chlorine gas, chlorine dioxide is highly combustible and care must be taken when
handling the chlorine dioxide.

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Break Point Chlorination

Chlorine Dose
= Chlorine Demand
+ Chlorine Residual

Chlorine
Demand

Image Source: Spon, R. (June 2008). Do You Really

Have a Free Chlorine Residual? AWWA Opflow;
https://springatewatercoop.myruralwater.com/doc
uments/527/Chlorination_and_ammonia__Aaron_J
enzen_.pdf

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Residual Chlorine
 Although, the evidences of microbs regrowth in treated water is inconclusive, residual
chlorine in water aims at protection against any regrowth or recontamination, by preventing
microbs growth in the treated water, specifically when the water is biologically unstable.

 Water temperatures and nutrient concentrations are not generally elevated enough
within the distribution system to support the growth of E. coli (or enteric pathogenic
bacteria) in biofilms. Thus, the presence of E. coli should be considered as evidence of
recent faecal contamination.

 Viruses and the resting stages of parasites (cysts, oocysts, ova) are also unable to
multiply in treated water.

 However, biofilms and coatings of organic and inorganic materials in pipes that can
harbour, and allow the proliferation of few bacterial pathogens, including Legionella and
Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC).

 Residual chlorine in water can also control non-pathogenic slime-forming organisms

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Ct for Chlorination
As per US Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
o 99.9 % inactivation (3-log removal) for Giardia and 99.99% inactivation (4-log removal) of viruses is required.
o Giardia is more difficult to kill with chlorine than viruses, and thus Giardia inactivation determines the Ct.

log removal = log10 (Influent Conc./Effluent Conc.)

Ct equation for Giardia: So, log removal of 1 is equivalent to 90% removal
log removal of 2 is equivalent to 99% removal

  pC *
log removal of 3 is equivalent to 99.9% removal
CCl  tcontact  0.2828  pH 2.69  CCl0.15  0.933
T -5 
log removal of 4 is equivalent to 99.99% removal

tcontact  CCl0.85  CCl = Free Cl2 Residual [mg/L]

pC* 
 
tcontact = Time required [min]
0.2828  pH 2.69  0.933
T -5 

 pH = pH of water
 T = Temperature, degrees C
 pC* = -[Log(fraction remaining)]

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Effect of Chlorination: Bacteria

Bacteria Cl2 Concentration Time Ct Factor (mg- Reduction(%) Reference
(mg/l) (min) min/l)
Campylobacter jejuni 0.1 5 0.5 99.99 Blaser et al, 1986
Escherichia coli 0.2 3 5 99.99 Ram and Malley, 1984
Legionella pneumophila 0.25 60-90 18.75 99 Kuchta et al, 1985
Mycobacterium chelonei 0.7 60 42 99.95 Carson et al, 1978

Mycobacterium fortuitum 1.0 30 30 99.4 Pelletier and DuMoulin, 1987

Mycobacterium intracellulare 0.15 60 9 70 Pelletier and DuMoulin, 1987
Pasteurella tularensis 0.5-1.0 5 3.75 99.6-100 Baumann and Ludwig, 1962
Salmonella typhi 0.5 6 3 99 Korol et al, 1995
Shigella dysenteriae 0.05 10 0.5 99.6-100 Baumann and Ludwig, 1962
Staphylococcus aureus 0.8 0.5 0.4 100 Bolton et al, 1988
Vibrio cholerae(smooth strain) 1.0 <1 <1 100 Rice et al, 1993
Vibrio cholerae (rugose strain) 2.0 30 60 99.999 Rice et al, 1993
Yersinia enterocolitica 1.0 30 30 92 Paz et al, 1993

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Effect of Chlorination: Viruses and Protozoa

Viruses Cl2 Concentration Time Ct Factor Reduction(%) Reference
(mg/l) (min) (mg-min/l)
Adenovirus 0.2 40-50 sec 0.15 99.8 Clarke et al, 1956
Coxsackie 0.16-0.18 3.8 0.06 99.6 Clarke and Kabler, 1954
Hepatitis A 0.42 1 0.42 99.99 Grabow et al, 1983

Norwalk 0.5-1.0 30 22.5 -- Keswick et al, 1985

Parvovirus 0.2 3.2 0.64 99 Churn et al, 1984
Poliovirus 0.5-1.0 30 22.5 100 Keswick et al, 1985
Rotavirus 0.5-1.0 30 22.5 100 Keswick et al, 1985

Protozoa Cl2 Concentration Time Ct Factor Reduction(%) Reference

(mg/l) (min) (mg-min/l)
Cryptosporidium parvum 80 90 7200* 90 Korich et al, 1990
Entamoeba histolytica 1.0 50 50 100 Snow, 1956
Giardia lamblia -- -- 68-389 99.9 AWWA, 1999
Naegleria fowleri 0.5-1.0 60 45 99.99 de Jonckheere and van de
Voorde, 1976

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Chlorination Risks: Disinfection By-products (DBPs)

 Chlorine in water also reacts with natural organic compounds to form potentially harmful chemical
by-products typically referred as Disinfection by-products (DBPs), such as trihalomethanes (THMs)
and haloacetic acids (HAAs).

 DBPs are usually carcinogenic in large quantities and regulated by several regulatory agencies.
Regulations regarding disinfection byproducts is complicated, as, thorough, water disinfection is
critical to preventing waterborne illness, but disinfection practices also lead to the formation of
disinfection byproducts.

 The formation of DBPs may be minimized by effective removal of as many organics from the water as
possible prior to chlorine addition.

 Chlorine dioxide and Chloramines usually produce lesser DBPs than Chlorine.
Image Source: https://www.hydroviv.com/blogs/water-smarts/disinfection-byproducts

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Chlorination Risks: Disinfection By-products (DBPs)

Common trihalomethanes (THMs)

Common haloacetic acids (HAAs)

Image Source: https://www.hydroviv.com/blogs/water-smarts/disinfection-byproducts

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Chlorination Risks: Taste Issues

 Chlorine compounds present in water may induce some specific taste in the water.
Compounds Order of the taste threshold (mg/L)
HOCl and OCl- ~ 0.5
NH2Cl ~ 0.8
NHCl2 and Chloroform ~ 0.1
Carbon tetrachloride ~ 0.3
Dichlorophenol and Dichlorobenzene ~ 0.0005

 Residual chlorine species add to some taste in water, which may prevent some consumers
from using treated water. Specially, introduction of chlorine into a community that has
always drunk water without the addition of chemicals can be difficult.

 Need to convince consumers that the chemical taste is healthy. With less chlorine, there is
less breakthrough of chlorinated compounds into the finished water, and therefore less of a
chemical taste. Reducing the amount of chlorine added might increase the social acceptance
of chlorination.

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Types of Chlorination
Plain chlorination
 Only chlorination for raw water contains turbidity <10 NTU
 The dosage of chlorine for plain chlorination is about 0.5 mg/L.

Pre-chlorination
 May be applied to the water before coagulation for heavily contaminated waters.
 The chlorine dose for pre-chlorination should be 0.1 to 0.5 mg/L.
 Always followed by post chlorination to ensure final safety of water.
 It has become much less common in the western countries due to risks of DBPs.

Post chlorination
 Normal process of applying chlorine in the end.
 Intended to leave a residual-chlorine of about 0.1-0.2 mg/L after 20-30 min contact.

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Types of Chlorination
Break point chlorination
 To get an idea of the amount of chlorine to be added to water for desired residual chlorine,
especially when intention is to leave free chlorine residual in treated water.

Super chlorination
 Addition of excessive chlorine (i.e., 5 to 15 mg/L) to give about 1 to 2 mg/L
 May be required in some special cases when the water is highly polluted, or during
epidemics of water borne diseases.

De-chlorination
 Removing chlorine using de-chlorinating agents such as sulphur dioxide gas, activated
carbon, sodium thiosulphiate, sodium metasulphate, and ammonia.
 Generally required post super-chlorination, to reduce residual chlorine to ~ 0.2 mg/L

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Chlorination Systems: Chlorine Gas

Typical Gas
Chlorinator
Equipment

Image Source: Water Treatment Manual: Disinfection (2011). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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Chlorination Systems: Hypochlorite

Typical Hypochlorite Storage and Dosing System Typical On-site Electrolytic Chlorination System

Image Source: Water Treatment Manual: Disinfection (2011). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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Chlorination Systems: Chlorine Contact Tanks

Image Source: Water Treatment Manual: Disinfection (2011). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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WATER SUPPLY ENGINEERING

Dr. MANOJ K TIWARI
SCHOOL OF WATER RESOURCES, IIT KHARAGPUR

Module 07: Disinfection, Sludge Management and Advanced Water Treatment

Lecture 37: Other Disinfection Methods: Ozone and UV Disinfection

41

 Disinfection with Ozone and UV

 UV and Ozone Disinfection Abilities
 Advantages and Disadvantages
 Comparison and By-products Implication of Different Disinfectants

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Disinfection with Ozone

 Ozone (O3) is one of the strongest disinfectants and oxidants available in drinking water treatment. It’s
a colorless gas, relatively unstable, especially at higher pH, as it reacts with itself and with OH- in water.

 Ozone leads to enhanced disinfection with reduced and lesser toxic DBPs (mainly include aldehydes,
ketones and carboxyl acids).
 Ozone is also helpful in removal of taste and odour, organic
and inorganic matter, micro-pollutants such as pesticides and
pharmaceuticals etc. It also helps in enhancing the
flocculation/coagulation-decantation process.

 Ozone must be generated onsite and used immediately, as it

has very short half-life (typically < 30 min). Thus, it can only be
used as a primary disinfectant, and a residual can not be
maintained in downstream processes. A secondary disinfectant
such as chlorine or chloramine must be added to maintain a Image Source: http://archive.sswm.info/category/implementation-tools/water-
purification/hardware/semi-centralised-drinking-water-treatme-10
disinfectant residual within the distribution system, if needed.

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Disinfection Abilities of Ozone

 Design of an ozone system as primary treatment should be based on simple criteria, including ozone
contact concentrations, competing ozone demands, and a minimum contact time to meet the
required cyst and viral inactivation requirements.

 The product of ozone concentration (C) and contact time (t) determines Ct which is an important
measure ability of ozone to disinfect and inactivate microbes.

Ct-values for the deactivation of viruses Ct-values for the deactivation of Giardia cysts

Image Source: https://www.lenntech.com/library/ozone/comparison/ozone-disinfectants-comparison.htm

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Ozone Treatment Process

 Ozone is generated onsite by an ozone generator that uses either dried air (requiring air dryers and
compressors) or liquid oxygen (preferred, as it produces higher a percent weight concentration of ozone.

 The solubility of ozone in water depends on temperature and its concentration in the feed gas. Ozone
contactors (diffused bubble or in-line injection systems) are used to dissolve ozone in water.
 Diffused bubble systems with countercurrent flow are more
common in drinking water treatment, as they can be better
controlled to ensure desired contact time. If needed, more
(than one) chambers are provided to ensure sufficient contact
time between ozone and water.

 The exhaust gas from ozone contactor must be recycled or

destroyed to minimize exposure risks (as all the applied ozone
may not get transferred into water). Ozone destructors usually
use heat or a combination of heat and a catalyst to remove Image Source: https://www.tes.com/lessons/o05nUfyVZC2E4Q/water-pollution
ozone from the air. Source: https://iaspub.epa.gov/tdb/pages/treatment/treatmentOverview.do?treatmentProcessId=-1467636837

45

Ozone Reactions in Water

 When ozone is added to water, a complex chain of reactions results in the formation of radicals, such as
hydroxyl radicals (·OH), which is stronger than ozone itself.

 Higher pH facilitates ozone decomposition due to increased hydroxyl radical formation; whereas, lower pH
(less than 7.0) slows down ozone decomposition resulting in higher concentrations of molecular ozone.
 The rate of ozone decomposition increases significantly
(due to ·OH formation) when the pH > 8, and ozone
residuals are difficult to maintain at pH levels > 9.

 Other water quality parameters also impact ozonation.

Higher alkalinity affects pH control, whereas, turbidity,
organic matters, and inorganics like iron and manganese
all increase ozone demand. Disinfecting and oxidative
properties are relatively independent of temperature;
however, as temperatures increase, the solubility of Image Source: https://www.lenntech.com/library/ozone/reaction/ozone-reaction-mechanisms.htm
ozone in water decreases. Source: https://iaspub.epa.gov/tdb/pages/treatment/treatmentOverview.do?treatmentProcessId=-1467636837

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Ozone Treatment: Applications, Advantages and Disadvantages

 Ozone application for drinking water treatment is more popular in European countries with over 1500
installations, while it has not had similar acceptance elsewhere including US due to its higher
installation and operational cost, and the fact it does not remain present for long in water.

Image Source: http://archive.sswm.info/category/implementation-tools/water-purification/hardware/semi-centralised-drinking-water-treatme-10

47

Disinfection with Ultraviolet Radiation (UV)

 The UV spectrum is higher in energy (higher
frequency and lower wavelength) than
visible light. It is known to be an effective
disinfectant due to its strong germicidal
(inactivating) ability. UV disinfects water
containing bacteria and viruses and can be
effective against protozoans like, Giardia
lamblia cysts or Cryptosporidium oocysts.

 When UV light enters a microorganism, its

energy leads to damage the microorganism’s
cellular function by physical damages
including strand breaks. The energy is
Image Source: https://www.alfaauv.com/blog/uv-and-disinfection-of-water/
absorbed by DNA, and inhibits cell
replication.

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UV Lamps for Disinfection

Low pressure (LP) UV lamps

– Wavelength at 254 nm
– Low intensity

Medium pressure (MP) UV lamps

– Wavelengths between 100-1000 nm
– High intensity

Pulsed UV lamps
– Intermittent emission at High intensity
Image Source: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Ultraviolet_germicidal_irradiation

49

UV Disinfection Abilities
Required UV dose for 4-log inactivation of common waterborne pathogens

Image Source: Water Treatment Manual: Disinfection (2011). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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UV Disinfection Systems
Skokie Water Treatment Facility, Chicago

Image Source: https://news.wttw.com/2016/03/23/worlds-largest-ultraviolet-disinfection-facility-tackles-chicago-river; http://archive.sswm.info/print/8007?tid=3147

51

UV Disinfection: Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages:
 UV disinfection is effective at inactivating most viruses, spores, and cysts.
 Does not alter taste, odour, colour or pH of the water.
 Does not require the addition of chemicals.
 Does not impart toxic by-products into the water
 Systems are compact and easy to install
Disadvantage:
 Low dosages may not effectively inactivate some viruses, spores, and cysts.
 Organisms can sometimes repair and reverse the destructive effects of UV through a “repair
mechanism,” known as photoreactivation, or in the absence of light known as “dark repair.”
 Turbidity and total suspended solids (TSS) in the wastewater can render UV disinfection ineffective.
 UV disinfection is not as cost-effective as chlorination, but costs are competitive when chlorination-
dechlorination is used and fire codes are met.
Source: http://www.nesc.wvu.edu/pdf/WW/publications/eti/UV_Dis_tech.pdf

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Combinations of Disinfectants
 There are published reports from laboratory tests of
synergistic benefits from using two or more disinfectants,
i.e. the overall inactivation is greater than the sum of the
inactivation achieved for each disinfectant individually.
 For example, one benefit from ozonation before UV
treatment is that ozone can degrade natural organics
which cause UV absorption thereby allowing the UV dose
to be a more effective disinfectant and more energy
efficient.
 Chlorine dioxide also shows a synergistic effect when
combined with other disinfectants such as ozone, chlorine,
and chloramines. Combination of disinfectants is known to
lead to greater inactivation when the disinfectants are
added in series rather than individually.
Image Source: Water Treatment Manual: Disinfection (2011). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

53

By-products Implication of Different Disinfectants

Image Source: Water Treatment Manual: Disinfection (2011). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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Advantages and Limitations of Common Disinfectants

Image Source: Water Treatment Manual: Disinfection (2011). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

55

Choice for Disinfectants

Image Source: https://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/env110/lesson7_4.htm

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57

WATER SUPPLY ENGINEERING

Dr. MANOJ K TIWARI
SCHOOL OF WATER RESOURCES, IIT KHARAGPUR

Module 07: Disinfection, Sludge Management and Advanced Water Treatment

Lecture 38: Sludge Management

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 Drinking Water Treatment Sludge

 Sludge Composition
 Sludge Processing and Management
 Sludge Dewatering and Drawing
 Sludge Disposal and Reuse

59

Drinking Water Treatment Residuals

Solids Residual (Sludge) in Drinking Water Treatment systems are generated at:
o Screening (if being used)
o Sedimentation (or Flotation)
o Filter Backwash
o Any additional chemical treatment producing sludge Image Source: https://www.acciona.com/pressroom/in-depth/2016/may/water-for-drinking/

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Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Production

 Majority of the sludge from drinking water treatment is separated in clarification operation which
may rely on settling, dissolved air floatation (DAF), or direct filtration through a granular medium.

 Typically, settled sludge production equates to 0.1 to 3% (v/v) of the raw water throughput.
However, the volume of sludge generated depends on the plant production, amount of coagulant
or other treatment chemical added (dose), and amount of suspended solids in the source water.

 Specific gravities of the “bulk” sludge typically ranges between 1.002 to 1.06, while values as high
as 1.3 are also reported.

 The alum and ferric sludge exhibit poor compaction traits, ranging from 0.5 to 2 percent solids.
Backwash residuals in water are also dilute (50 to 400 mg/L of suspended solids) due to the
relatively low level of filtered particles washed with the relatively large volume of water necessary
to clean the filter (EPA/ASCE/AWWA, 1996, 1997). Source: USEPA (2011). Drinking Water Treatment Plant Residuals Management: Technical Report

61

Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Production

Typical Chemical Coagulation Sludge Volumes

Source: USEPA (2011). Drinking Water Treatment Plant Residuals Management: Technical Report

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Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Composition

 Drinking water treatment processes produce sludge mainly containing the precipitated chemical
additives (coagulant and flocculant) and removed contaminants.

 Water treatment sludges typically comprise:

 Naturally-occurring colloidal and other particulate matter (e.g. silt, clay, algae)

 Dissolved natural organic matter (NOM) (e.g. humic acids, fulvic acids)

 Precipitated water treatment chemicals (iron or alum hydroxides, lime, polymers etc)

 Oxide precipitates of inorganic species dissolved in the raw water (e.g. iron, manganese)

 Filter media flushed out during backwashing

Source: Verrelli, D. I. (2008). Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Production and Dewaterability

63

Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Processing and Management

 Due to high water content, conventional water treatment sludge usually requires additional processing
such as thickening, dewatering, or drying prior to reuse or disposal.

 Sludge thickening is a process in which the solids concentration is increased and the total sludge volume
is correspondingly decreased, but the sludge still behaves like a liquid instead of a solid. Thickening
commonly produces sludge solids concentrations in the 3% to 5% range, whereas the point at which
sludge begins to have the properties of a solid is between 15% and 20% solids.

 Further, sludge dewatering aims separates liquid and solid phase attempting the least possible residual
moisture in the solid phase and the lowest possible solid particle residues in the separated liquid phase.

 Because of their low solids content, the conventional water treatment sludges are difficult to dewater.
In case of lime softening process is used, softening sludge settles to a solids content ranging from 2 to
15 percent, and thus easier to dewater and compact than coagulation sludge (ASCE/AWWA, 1997).
Source: USEPA (2011). Drinking Water Treatment Plant Residuals Management: Technical Report

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Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Thickening and Dewatering

 Several devices are used to separate the solid and liquid phases of water treatment plant sludge, and
the majority rely on either density differences or physical retention of particles on a filter. Common
methods or devices include:
o Gravity thickening
o Gravity belt thickeners
o Centrifuges
o Vacuum filters
o Filter presses
o Lagoons
o Sludge drying beds
o Freeze-assisted drying beds Source: Verrelli, D. I. (2008). Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Production and Dewaterability

65

Sludge Thickening
 Thickening operations increase the solids fraction of the sludge, and provide a more consistent sludge
stream to the downstream dewatering operation.

 Thickening may be carried out by gravity sedimentation, floatation, or by mechanical means like
gravity belt thickening. Of these alternatives, gravity thickening is the most prevalent in industry.

Source: Peirce et al (1998). Sludge Treatment, Utilization, and Disposal, in Environmental Pollution and Control (Fourth Edition), 1998

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Gravity Thickeners
Gravity Sedimentation Thickener FlotationThickener

Image Source: Peirce et al (1998). Sludge Treatment, Utilization, and Disposal, in Environmental Pollution and Control (Fourth Edition), 1998,
https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/3-s2.0-B9781856174213500018-f01-04-9781856174213.jpg;

67

Mechanical Thickeners
Gravity Belt Thickener
Screw Press Thickener

Centrifuge Thickener Rotary Drum Thickener

Image Sources:
http://www.bdpindustries.com/produ
cts/gravity-belt-thickener/;
http://www.fkcscrewpress.com/crst.ht
ml;
http://web.deu.edu.tr/atiksu/ana52/sl
udisx2.html/;
http://www.buecoparagon.com/MDS/

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Sludge Dewatering
 The thickened sludge (or at times, even raw sludge) is
then dewatered using either natural or mechanical
dewatering processes (mostly developed for application
in the wastewater industry with more or less adjustment
to suit water treatment).

 Natural dewatering operations (Sludge Drying Beds)

remove water primarily by either evaporation or
drainage. Evaporation is driven by solar radiation, air
humidity, and wind; drainage occurs through the pull of
gravity and capillary suction.

 Mechanical means of dewatering include centrifuge or

various forms of filtration: presses, belts, and drums.
Source: Verrelli, D. I. (2008). Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Production and Dewaterability;
https://metenviro.com/services/sludge-dewatering/; https://www.flickr.com/photos/gtzecosan/3922151435

69

Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Reuse Options

 Utilization in wastewater treatment: Involves recovering coagulants from water treatment sludge and
reuse it to remove impurities such as turbidity, BOD, COD, TSS, and phosphate from wastewater.

 Application as (civil) engineering materials: Can be applied as raw materials to produce construction
supplies, including cement, bricks, concretes and lightweight aggregates. Alum based dried sludge form
essentially insoluble ‘rocks’ and are inert (like gravel, though not as strong/hard), thus has been used as
‘road fill’ and back-filling beneath fibreglass swimming pools road.

 Agricultural practices and other land-based uses: Unlike wastewater sludge, residuals from water
treatment are biologically inert with little organic content and have little value as a fertilizer or soil
conditioner. Typical agricultural reuse include soil pH adjustment, immobilisation of phosphorus in
eutrophic lake recovery and pit filling. Sometime it is also used for other land-based uses.

 Chemical reuse: Used for chemical recoveries (aluminium sulfate from alum sludge, other metals/salts).
Source: https://www.ukdiss.com/examples/water-treatment-sludge-management.php

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Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Disposal

 Water treatment plant sludge handling is still “casual” in most countries. Only little amount is reused,
while majority of find it’s way to environment through disposal. The popular disposal routes for water
treatment sludges include:

 Discharge to a natural water body: Popular in the past, no longer considered a viable option.

 Discharge to sewer: Can be ‘treated’ together with sewage treatment sludges at STPs.

 Discharge to lagoons: Generally an interim step, while some use lagoon storage as ultimate disposal

 Waste landfill: Dewatered sludge send to landfills for long-term surface storage

 Land application: Disposed of to barren land or agricultural land (for agricultural use)

 Engineering fill: Disposed (beneficial use) at filling material at civil construction sites.
Source: Verrelli, D. I. (2008). Drinking Water Treatment Sludge Production and Dewaterability

71

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WATER SUPPLY ENGINEERING

Dr. MANOJ K TIWARI
SCHOOL OF WATER RESOURCES, IIT KHARAGPUR

Module 07: Disinfection, Sludge Management and Advanced Water Treatment

Lecture 39: Advanced and Alternate Treatment Systems

73

 Need for Advanced Treatment System

 Lime/Soda Softening
 Chemical Oxidation, Precipitation and Co-Precipitation
 Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF)
 Adsorption and Ion-Exchange Processes

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Risks with Conventional Water Treatment

 The conventional water treatment processes are not able to address adequately the
removal of a wide spectrum of toxic chemicals, nutrients, salts and pathogenic
microorganisms such as Cryptosporidium in raw water.

 The new/emerging micro contaminants (e.g., endocrine disrupting compounds

(EDCs), pharmaceuticals, personal care products etc) are usually not removed
through conventional processes. Image Source: https://www.oregon.gov/oha/PH/HealthyEnvironments/DrinkingWater/Operations/Treatment/Pages/index.aspx

75

Advanced/Alternate Water Treatment Processes

Processes Objectives
Non-Membrane Systems
• Lime Soda Softening or Precipitation
 Water softening
• Alum or Iron compound co-precipitation
• Dissolved Air Flotation
 Heavy metals removal
• Ion Exchange
 Nutrients removal
• Granular Activated Carbon
• Advanced oxidation processes  Emerging contaminants removal
• UV / Ozone disinfection
 Advanced microbiol controls
Membrane Processes
• Microfiltration
• Ultrafiltration
• Nanofiltration
• Reverse Osmosis
• Electrodialysis

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Lime/Soda Softening: Hardness Removal

Cold Lime Softening: When hydrated lime, Ca(OH)2, is added to the water being treated at
ambient temperatures, the following reactions occurs:

Hot Lime Softening: Hot process softening is usually carried out under pressure, and at elevated
temp. of 227-240°F (108-116°C), leading to softening reactions go essentially to completion. It
involves same reactions, except that raw water CO2 is vented and does not react. The use of
lime and soda ash permits hardness reduction down to about 8 ppm as CaCO3. Magnesium is
reduced to 2-5 ppm because of the lower solubility of magnesium hydroxide at the elevated
temperatures. Image Source: https://iaspub.epa.gov/tdb/pages/treatment/treatmentOverview.do?treatmentProcessId=-2062922688

77

Lime/Soda Softening: Design Consideration

 In lime soda-ash softening plants, the softening process may be carried out by a sequence of rapid
mix, flocculation, and sedimentation or in a solids contactor.

 In the solids contactor the rapid mix, flocculation, and sedimentation occur in a single unit.

 Detention time in the flocculator is important to allow particles to come in contact with each
other. The minimum time recommended is 30 minutes for water softening.

Hot Lime Softening

Solid Contactor
Image Source: http://www.transtutors.com/

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Lime/Soda Softening: Performance

Typical softener effluent analyses

Image Source: GE Water Handbook

79

Lime/Soda Softening: Recarbonation

 Recarbonation refers to adding carbon dioxide in the water by bubbling gases containing
carbon dioxide (CO2) through water, generally for pH adjustments.

 After adding lime and/or soda ash, treated water will generally have a pH greater than 10.

 It is necessary to lower the pH to stabilize the water and prevent deposition of carbonate
scale on filter sand and distribution piping.

 Recarbonation is the most common process used to reduce pH by diffusing CO2 gas through
water to cover-up for the removed CO2 with lime addition, and/or converting carbonates to
bicarbonates and thereby stabilize the solution against precipitation of carbonates.

 Generally, enough carbon dioxide is added to reduce the pH of the water to less than 8.7,
typically near 8.4.

 The amount of carbon dioxide added is determined using a saturation index.

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Chemical Oxidation, Precipitation or Co-Precipitation: Fe, Mn, As Removals

 Constituents such as Fe and Mn can be removed by oxidation followed by precipitation or filtration,
whereas, a few metals like As may get removed through co-precipitation as they get adsorbed on
iron or alum precipitates.

 Chemical oxidants such as oxygen (through aeration), ozone, chlorine, hypochlorites, potassium
permanganate.

 Typically, ferrous iron (Fe2+) is oxidized to ferric iron (Fe3+), which readily forms the insoluble iron
hydroxide complex Fe(OH)3. Reduced manganese (Mn2+) is oxidized to (Mn4+), which forms insoluble
MnO2.

 Particulates of iron or manganese (or alum) may be removed by clarification or filtration. In addition
to sand, other filter media such as manganese greensand, electromedia or ceramics may be used.

81

Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF)

 Dissolved air flotation (DAF) is another form of clarification process that relies on flotation of floc
particles to the surface instead of gravity sedimentation.

 It removes light suspended matters, algae and oils as an alternative clarification process when
sedimentation is not as effective. The DAF process is also particularly suited to the treatment of
nutrient-rich reservoir waters that may contain heavy algal blooms.

 DAF operates on the principal of the transfer of floc to the surface of water through attachment of air
bubbles to the floc. The floc accumulated on the surface, known as the ‘float’, is skimmed off as sludge

 It is a kind of “induced flotation” applying the capacity of certain solid or liquid particles to join with
air bubbles forming particle-gas clusters less dense than liquid phase.

 The resultant of forces (gravity, thrust, friction) leads to an upward movement of the gas-particle
cluster that finally concentrates on the liquid surface, and is skimmed off.

 For drinking water treatment, DAF is more popular in European countries, while only few installation
have been done elsewhere.

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Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF)

Image Source : https://enviraj.com/envipedia/dissolved-air-flotation.html;

https://www.waterworld.com/technologies/article/16190938/clarifying-treatment-dissolved-air-flotation-provides-alternative-for-treating-raw-water-with-light-particles

83

Adsorption
 Adsorption is a mass transfer process which involves the
accumulation of pollutant at the solid surfaces thereby leaving
the water phase, and is typically used for removing a wide
range of compounds including various micropollutants, organic
compounds, and a few metals from the source waters.

Physical / Physisorption (van der Waals adsorption):

• Weak bonding Image Source : https://www.microtrac-bel.com/en/tech/bel/entry40.html

• Exothermic (of the order of 0.1 Kcal/mole)

• Reversible
Chemical / Chemisorption:
• Chemical bonding by reaction
• Exothermic (of the order of 10 Kcal/mole)
• May be irreversible Image Source : http://www.degremont.com/en/news/special-
topics/micropollutants-in-water-treatment-processes/
More popular for wastewater treatment

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Adsorption Mechanism

Image Source : Tan and Hameed (2017). Insight into the adsorption kinetics models
for the removal of contaminants from aqueous solutions, Journal of the Taiwan
Institute of Chemical Engineers, 74, 25-48

Image Source : https://web.wpi.edu/Pubs/E-project/Available/E-project-022813-180922/unrestricted/IBP_MQP.pdf

85

Common Adsorbents in Water Treatment

Image Source: Singh et al (2018). Water purification by using Adsorbents: A Review, Environ. Technol Innov., 11, 187-240

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Carbon Based Adsorbents

 A typical carbon particle has numerous pores that provide a large surface
area for water treatment. Activated carbon is prepared to exhibits a high
degree of porosity and an extended surface area.
 Contaminants adhere to the surface of these carbon granules or become
trapped in the small pores of the activated carbon. These are efficient to
remove various organics, metals, chlorine, fluorine or radon and other
micro pollutants from water (not very effective for microbial
contaminants, some metals, nitrates and other inorganic contaminants.

PAC - Powdered activated carbon; particle size 1-150 μm

GAC - Granular activated carbon, particle size 0.5-4 mm Image Source : http://aqua-cache.com/components/wpu,
EAC - Extruded activated carbon, particle size 0.8-4 mm https://www.elgalabwater.com/technologies/activated-carbon

87

Activated Carbon Filters

Image Source : https://www.euwa.com/activated-carbon-filtration.html, https://www.indiamart.com/proddetail/activated-carbon-filter-7801791830.html

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Activated Carbon Filter Performance

Active carbon adsorption shows very good removal efficiencies for organic contaminants and moderate to
good efficiency with select metals and ions. Reported removal efficiency for various organics are as under:
Removal efficiency (%) of chlorinated compounds from wastewater by
five commercially available types of activated carbon Source: Pavonia et al 2006
o BTEX (80-99,9 %);
o PAH (98-99,8 %);
o AOX (>90 %);
o COD;
o Colorants;
o Alcohols, xylenes;
o phenols (60 – 90 %);
o Zeolite adsorption;
o NH4-N (flows with maximum 40 mg/l, 99%).
Source : https://emis.vito.be/en/techniekfiche/adsorption-techniques

89

Ion-Exchange
 Ion Exchange (IX) process is typically used for dissolved ionic impurities and hardness. Contaminant ions in
water is removed by exchange with another non-objectionable ionic substance. Ion exchangers hold the
retained ion temporarily, and then release it to a regenerant solution.
 It is a physicochemical process in which ions are swapped between a solution phase and solid resin phase.
 The solid resin is typically an elastic three-
dimensional hydrocarbon network containing a large
number of ionizable groups electrostatically bound to
the resin. A synthetic resin of relatively well defined
ion exchange capacity exchanges ions held
electrostatically on the surface with ions of similar
charge dissolved in water. Depends on Selectivity of Ions
 The target ion removal is accomplished by
continuously passing water under pressure through Image Source : Source: Asian Water, March 2009
one or more columns packed with exchange resin.

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Ion-Exchange Resins
Strong Acid Cation (SAC): Remove nearly all cations, replacing them with hydrogen ion

Weak Acid Cation (WAC): Remove cations associated with alkalinity, producing carbonic acid

Strong Base Anion (SBA): Remove all commonly encountered anions

Weak Base Anion (WBA): Readily re-move sulfuric, nitric, and hydrochloric acids

Image Source : https://gewater.com/handbook/ext_treatment/ch_8_ionexchange.jsp;

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ion-exchange_resin; http://kbkf.kkft.bme.hu/labor/ion_exchange.pdf

91

Typical Ion-Exchangers
 Anion demineralizers
containing anion resin

 Cation demineralizers
containing cation resin

 Mixed-bed demineralizers
containing both cation
and anion resins.

Source : http://kbkf.kkft.bme.hu/labor/ion_exchange.pdf

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Ion-Exchange Process and Regeneration

 First, water is passed through the exchanger and ion-exchange processes results in contaminants
retaining to the medium, while clean water flows through the outlet of the exchanger.
 When the capacity of exchanger is exhausted, it does not retains any more contaminants, resulting
in poor efficiency. Thus, the resin must be reactivated through regeneration process for it to work
further for contaminant removal.
 The "reactivation" process of resin is called regeneration and is carried out using a strong acid for
the cation (as a source of hydronium ions) and caustic solution (e.g sodium hydroxide) as a source
of hydroxyl ions for the anion. Regeneration of the exchange material involves three steps:
 Backwash: reversal of the normal flow to wash out any suspended matter in the bed and to
“fluff” the bed
 Introduction of the regeneration chemicals: to reactivate the resign by replacing the
contaminant ions with regenerant ions.
 Rinse: washing out the last traces of regenerant chemical
 Units are usually installed in duplicate to permit continuous service during regeneration.

93

Ion-Exchange Process and Regeneration

Co flow regeneration (Cocurrent) Reverse flow regeneration (Countercurrent)

Image Source : http://dardel.info/IX/processes/regeneration.html

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Adsorption and Ion-Exchange Limitations

o Exhaustion of capacity of adsorbent or Ion-Exchange resin

o Differential pressure development in the unit

o Temperature affects the efficiency of adsorption and Ion-Exchange: Less effective at

higher temperature

o Competitive solutes or ions present in the water reduces the efficiency of the systems

o Requires good process control

o Moderate cost (cheaper than membrane processes, but costlier that conventional
systems)

95

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WATER SUPPLY ENGINEERING

Dr. MANOJ K TIWARI
SCHOOL OF WATER RESOURCES, IIT KHARAGPUR

Module 07: Disinfection, Sludge Management and Advanced Water Treatment

Lecture 40: Advanced Oxidation Processes and Membrane Processes

97

 Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs)

 Membrane Processes
 Microfiltration, Ultrafiltration, Nanofiltration and Reverse Osmosis
 Electrodialysis
 Membrane Operation, Fouling and Controls
 Advantages and Disadvantages

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Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs)

o Typically used for the removal of recalcitrant
organics from water.

o The AOPs essentially target oxidation through

highly reactive •OH radicals, which could be
produced using different reagent systems,
which include photochemical degradation
processes (UV/O3, UV/H2O2), photocatalysis
(TiO2/UV, photo-Fenton reactives), and
chemical oxidation processes (O3, O3/H2O2,
H2O2/Fe2+).

AOPs: •OH− (+ pollutant) → CO2 + H2O + inorganic ions

Image Source : Poyatos, J.M., Muñio, M.M., Almecija, M.C. et al. Water Air
Soil Pollut (2010) 205: 187. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-009-0065-1

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Advanced Oxidation Mechanism and Types of AOPs

Image Source : Govindraj et al (2016). Nanocatalysts in Fenton Based Advanced Oxidation Process for Water and Wastewater Treatment, Journal of Bionanoscience 10(5):356-368.
https://www.sswm.info/sswm-university-course/module-6-disaster-situations-planning-and-preparedness/further-resources-0/advanced-oxidation-processes

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Advantages and Disadvantages of AOPs

Image Source : DOI: 10.3390/su9091604

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Membrane Processes
 A membrane is a selective barrier that permits the separation of certain species in a fluid by combination of
sieving and diffusion mechanisms.
 Membranes can separate particles and molecules and over a wide particle size range and molecular weights
 Membrane processes are being used increasingly for the production of "pure" waters from fresh water and
seawater.
 Although expensive, membrane technology is advancing quickly becoming less expensive, improving
performance, and extending life expectancy.

Image Source : https://www.nap.edu/read/13303/chapter/6;

https://canvas.jmu.edu/courses/1484140/pages/membrane-filtration

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Membrane Operation and Removal Spectrum

o Reverse Osmosis (RO)

o Nanofiltration (NF)
o Ultrafiltration (UF)
o Microfiltration (MF)
Image Source : Fane A.G.., Wang R., Jia Y. (2011) Membrane Technology: Past, Present and Future. In: Wang L.K., Chen J.P., Hung YT., Shammas N.K. (eds) Membrane and
Desalination Technologies. Handbook of Environmental Engineering, vol 13. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ; https://canvas.jmu.edu/courses/1484140/pages/membrane-filtration

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Membrane Types
According to the driving force of the operation it is possible to distinguish:
o Pressure driven operations – microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, reverse osmosis
o Concentration driven operations – dialysis, pervaporation, forward osmosis, artificial
lung, gas separation
o Electric potential gradient driven operations – electrodialysis, membrane electrolysis,
electrofiltration, fuel cell
o Temperature gradient driven operations– membrane distillation

In water treatment, mostly used membranes processes are pressure driven processes
(microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, reverse osmosis) and electrodialysis.

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Different Membrane Processes Application in Water Treatment

Microfiltration and Ultrafiltration
o Rely on pure straining through porosity in the membranes. Pressure required is lower than RO and
covers for frictional head losses

Nanofiltration
o Divalent cations and anions are preferentially rejected over the monovalent cations and anions.
Some organics with MW > 100 -500 are also removed. There is an osmotic pressure developed but
it is less than that of the RO process.

Reverse Osmosis
o RO is the process of reversing the osmosis flow by pressure application, forcing water through a
membrane from a concentrated solution to a dilute solution to produce filtered water. RO modules
may be staged in various designs, producing the highest-quality permeate with the least amount of
waste. Typically, all particulates and 95% of dissolved salts are reduced. However, due to their
molecular porosity, RO do not remove dissolved gases, such as Cl2, CO2, and O2.

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Different Membrane Processes Application in Water Treatment

Electrodialysis
o Transfer ions of dissolved salts across
membranes, leaving purified water
behind. A negative electrode (cathode)
attracts cations, and a positive electrode
(anode) attracts anions. Ion movement
is induced by direct current electrical
fields. Systems are compartmentalized
in stacks by alternating cation and anion
transfer membranes. Typically, 40-60%
of dissolved ions are rejected. Further
improvement in water quality is
obtained by operation of stacks in
series. The processes do not remove
particulate contaminants or weakly Image Source : Barakat, M. (2011). New Trends in Removing Heavy Metals from Industrial
Wastewater, Arabian Journal of Chemistry 4(4):361-377
ionized contaminants, such as silica.

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Membrane Configurations

Image Source :
http://archive.sswm.info/category/step-rrr-business-development/module-2-sector-inputs/technological-
options/technological-20; http://www.chemtechfiltration.com/membrane_configuration.html

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Popular Membranes and Suitability of Modules

Popular Membranes
Used in Water Treatment

Membranes Modules Suitability

Process Tubular Hollow Fiber Plate and Frame Spiral Wound

Microfiltration Good Not suitable Good Not suitable

Ultrafiltration Good Adequate Good Adequate
Nanofiltration Good Good Good Adequate
Reverse Osmosis Adequate Good Adequate Good
Pervaporation Adequate Good Good Good
Electrodialysis Not suitable Not suitable Good Not suitable

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Membrane Fouling, Control and Cleaning

Chemical Fouling: Potential deposition and accumulation of constituent (Ca and Mg salts etc.) present in
the feed stream on the membrane.
Biological Fouling: Various microorganisms can deposit on membrane surface.

Control of Fouling:
 Using anti-fouling membranes
 Pretreatment of water: Prefilteration, Chlorination, UV application in upstream of the membrane

Membrane Cleaning:
 Membranes can be cleaned physically, biologically or chemically.
 Physical cleaning includes sponges, water jets or back flushing using a permeate. Biological cleaning
uses biocides/disinfectants to remove all viable microorganisms, whereas chemical cleaning involves
the use of acids and bases to remove foulants.

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Reject Management
 While high end membranes like RO are highely effective method for water purification, it leaves
significant proportion (typically 20-50%) of the feed water as concentrate or reject water.
 The contaminants removed from the treated stream concentrate the reject, converting it potentially
high contaminated stream.
 Recent research is attempting to minimize the RO Reject.
 The popular options for reject handling are as under:
o Evaporation – Cost and energy intensive and environmentally not sustainable
o Crystallization – Expensive and energy intensive process
o Recycle back to early treatment stage – Keep recycling the contaminants in the system
o Release to drain for treatment with sewage - Contaminants transfer to wastewater medium
o Deep Well injection - Limited by geology, and risks groundwater contamination
o Irrigating golf courses and roadway vegetation - Environmental limitations
o Saline wetlands – Limited capacity due to high land requirements

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Membrane Reactor Applications

o Desalting

o Softening

o Trace metals and ions

removal

o Removing color, odor,

and other organic
contaminants

o Removing microbial
contaminations

Image Source : https://www.wigen.com/products/reverse-osmosis-nanofiltration.php

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Membrane Processes: Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages o High performance
o Compact units: less space needed than conventional treatment schemes
o Simple operation
o Membranes available can be used to separate many kinds of contaminants
o Disinfection can be performed without chemicals

Disadvantages o Demineralized water is unhealthy

o Membrane fouling
o Production of polluted water (Reject / Concentrated and Backwashing)
o Membranes have to be replaced on a regular basis

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Challenges With Various Water Treatment Options

Image Source: Singh et al (2018). Water purification by using Adsorbents: A Review, Environ. Technol Innov., 11, 187-240

113

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WATER SUPPLY ENGINEERING

Dr. MANOJ K TIWARI
SCHOOL OF WATER RESOURCES, IIT KHARAGPUR

Module 07: Disinfection, Sludge Management and Advanced Water Treatment

Lecture 41: Practice Problems

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 Worked Examples on Chlorination / Sludge Calculations / RO Operation

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Practice Problem 1: Chlorine Dose and Demand

A water treatment plant uses 50.0 kg/d of chlorine to treat 40 MLD of water. The residual chlorine after 30
minutes contact time is 0.15 mg/L. Determine the chlorine dosage and chlorine demand of the water

Solution: Chlorine Dose = 50 kg in 40 ML water

= 50*106 mg / 40*106 L
= 1.25 mg/L

Chlorine Residual = Chlorine Dose – Chlorine Demand

Or, Chlorine Demand = Chlorine Dose – Chlorine Residual
= 1.25 mg/L – 0.15 mg/L
= 1.1 mg/L

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Practice Problem 2: Chlorine Dose Calculations

A water sampled from the filter outlet has resulted in the following data for Chlorine dose-residual curve after
20 mins contact time. What are the predominant forms of chlorine constituting residual chlorine at chlorine
dose of 1 mg/L and 2.5 mg/L. Further, estimate the followings:
(a) chlorine demand (in mg/L) of water,
(b) chlorine dose (in mg/L) for achieving breakpoint chlorination,
(c) chlorine dose (in mg/L) for ensuring 0.2 mg/L free residual chlorine in treated water,
(d) daily requirement of chlorine for treating a flow of 10 MLD, ensuring 0.2 mg/L free residual chlorine in
treated water.
Solution:
(a) Chlorine Demand = 0.1 mg/L
(b) Chlorine dose for breakpoint chlorination = 1.75 mg/L
(c) Chlorine dose for 0.2 mg/L free residual chlorine = 2 mg/L
(d) Daily requirement of Chlorine for treating 10 MLD
= 2 mg/L*10*106 L/d = 20*106 mg/d = 20 kg/d

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Practice Problem 3: Sludge Generation

A conventional water treatment plant treats an average flow of 0.22 m3/s. The total suspended solids (TSS)
concentration in raw (river) water averages 88 mg/L. The TSS removal through sedimentation and filtration
processes is 97 percent. Alum is used for coagulation/ sedimentation purpose. The average dosage of alum is
18 mg/L as aluminium. Assume the aluminium ion is completely converted to aluminium hydroxide [Al(OH)3].
Compute the average production of sludge, and estimate the sludge volume generated daily, assuming the
specific gravity of 4% sludge is 1.02.
Solution: Q = 0.22 m3/s
TSS Removed = 97% or 88 mg/L = 85.36 mg/L
Coagulant added = 18 mg/L as Aluminium
If it’s completely converted to aluminium hydroxide, the aluminium produced
= 18*M.Wt of aluminium hydroxide/ M.Wt of aluminium hydroxide = 18*78/27 = 52 mg/L

Dry solids produced = TSS Removed + aluminium hydroxide formed

= 85.36 + 52 = 137.36 mg/L
= 137.36*0.22*103*24*60*60 = 2.611x109 mg/d = 2611 kg/d
Total Sludge Wt (for 4% Sludge) = 2611/0.04 = 65275 kg/d = 65.275 ton/day
Total Sludge Volume (SG 1.02) = 65275/(1*1.02) = 63995 L ≈ 64 m3/d

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Practice Problem 4: Sludge Thickening and Dewatering

A gravity thickening unit receives 40 m3/d sludge with solid content as 1% (V/V), and is able to increase solid
content to 4 %. The outflow from the thickening unit is put to a mechanical dewatering unit to further increase the
solid content in sludge to 25%. Determine the sludge volume coming out from the gravity thickener and
mechanical dewatering unit.

Solution: Total Sludge inflow = 40 m3/d

Volume of Solids inflow = 0.01*40 = 0.4 m3/d

Outflow from thickener contains 4 % solids

So, if sludge volume outflow from thickener is ST, then
0.04 ST= 0.4 m3/d
ST = 0.4/0.04 = 10 m3/d

Now, if sludge volume outflow from dewatering unit is SD, then

0.25 SD= 0.4 m3/d
SD = 0.4/0.25 = 1.6 m3/d

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Practice Problem 5: RO Operation

A RO unit having feed water TDS as 800 mg/L produce 75 % permeate with TDS 60 mg/L. Calculate the TDS
levels in RO Reject.

Solution: Feed water TDS = 800 mg/L

If feed water inflow to the unit is Q (L/d) , then
Total TDS inflow = 800*Q mg/d

TDS is permeate = 60 mg/L

Flow in permeate = 0.75Q
TDS outflow through permeate = 60*0.75Q mg/d

Say TDS in reject is ‘X’ mg/L

Flow in Reject = 0.25 Q
TDS outflow through reject = X*0.25Q mg/d

Applying Mass Balance: TDS inflow = TDS Outflow

800*Q = (60*0.75Q) + (X*0.25Q)
X = (800-45)/0.25= 3020 mg/L = 3.02 g/L

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