Introduction to

Conventional water
purification processes
BSCE 4A BACULANTA, DERILO, MARAYA
 Module 7 Reporters
BSCE 4A

Mark Louie Epifanio John

Derilo Trishia Maraya Baculanta
Water Treatment
Process
Water Treatment Process

These are any processes that improves

water quality to make it appropriate for
a specific end-use.

• Drinking
• Industrial Water Supply
• Irrigation
• River Flow Maintenance
• Water Recreation
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They remove contaminants and

any undesirable components that
reduces their concentration so that
the water becomes fit for its
desired end-use.
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These processes may differ in different

communities depending on the water
source that enters the plant, according
to CDC (Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention).
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Table 1. From Water Treatment Process acc. to

Caramillia et al. (2014) from their book Drinking
Water Security for Engineers, Planners, and
Managers
Physical-treatment
Physical-treatment
processes
processes
 Physical-treatment processes

Large items can impede equipment in the

treatment process, such as a tree limb
getting stuck in a water pump impeller.

Surface water sources contain varying

amounts of suspended and dissolved
materials.
 Physical-treatment processes

❑ The first process in conventional water treatment is to screen or strain out the more oversized
items.
❑ This is often accomplished using a large metal screen placed before the water source
intake, often called a bar screen. These screens must routinely be raked or cleaned off.
❑ Two types of screens are: coarse screen and the fine screen

Clips taken from Screening of Water in Water Treatment plant ( Environmental Engineering )
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbnSXZ68nFw
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Coarse screens
• steel bars spaced 5–15 cm
apart,
• prevent damage from large
items to the mechanical
equipment.
• made of corrosion-resistant bars
and positioned at an angle of
60º to facilitate the removal of
the collected material by
mechanical raking.
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Fine screens
• come after the coarse screens,
keep out material that can block
pipework at the plant.
• consist of steel bars that are
spaced 5–20 mm apart.
• A variation of the fine screen is
the micro strainer which consists
of a rotating drum of stainless-
steel mesh with a minimal mesh
size can be trapped.
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❑ Water is aerated by passing it over a series of

steps to take in oxygen from air
❑ Assists in expelling soluble gases such as
carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide
❑ Expels gaseous organic compounds that
may give undesirable taste to the water

❑ Removes iron or manganese by oxidation to

their insoluble form; these can cause
peculiar taste, and staining to clothes
❑ With chlorine as additive, aeration kills algae
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❑ Coagulation allows removal of suspended fine water particles less than 1 μm in size.
❑ A chemical called a coagulant (with a positive electrical charge) is added to the water,
neutralizing the fine particles' negative electrical charge. Since their charges are now
neutralized, the fine particles come together, forming soft, fluffy particles called 'flocs.'
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1 2 3 4

Water Treatment | Coagulation Flocculation Basics

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qV_1jfmhpnA
 Physical-treatment processes

The coagulation 1
process involves The positive 2
adding iron or charge of the
aluminum salts, coagulant
such as neutralizes the
aluminum negative
sulfate, ferric charge of
sulfate, ferric dissolved and
chloride, or suspended
polymers, to the particles in the
water. water.
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3 4
The larger
When this particles, or
reaction floc, are heavy
occurs, the and quickly
particles bind settle
together or (sedimentation)
coagulate to the bottom
(aka of the water
flocculation). supply.
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Setting time
Diameter of
Type of Particle through 1m. of
Particle
water

10 mm Gravel 1 second

1 mm Sand 10 seconds

0.1 mm Fine Sand 2 minutes

10 micron Protozoa, Algae, Clay 2 hours

1 micron Bacteria, Algae 8 days

0.1 micron Viruses, Colloids 2 years

10 nm Viruses, Colloids 20 years

1 nm Viruses, Colloids 200 years

Setting Time for Particles of Various Diameters

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The flocculation basin often has several compartments with decreasing mixing speeds as the water
advances through the basin. This compartmentalized chamber allows increasingly large flocs to form
without being broken apart by the mixing blades.
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Sedimentation is a common way of treating water. It is a process that removes

solids that float and settle in the water. The process relies on the use of
sedimentation tanks that remove larger solids. The material accumulated at the
bottom of the tank is called sludge; this is removed for disposal.

(a) Flocculation chamber (b) Sedimentation tank

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The Advantages of Sedimentation in Wastewater Treatment.

Sedimentation of water is one of the most basic processes of purifying water,

making it a process that is commonly used and understood throughout the
world. It may be used as a preliminary step in some water treatment processes.
It provides the following benefits to municipalities that employ it:
• Fewer chemicals are required for subsequent water treatment.
• It makes any subsequent process easier.
• The cost is lower than some other methods.
• There is less variation in the quality of water that goes through
the process.
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Filtration is the process where solids are separated from a liquid. In water treatment, the solids that
are not separated out in the sedimentation tank are removed by passing the water through beds of
sand and gravel. Rapid gravity filters (Figure 5.7), with a flow rate of 4–8 cubic meters per square
meter of filter surface per hour (4-8 𝑚3 /𝑚2/ h)
Figure 5.7 Cross-sectional diagram of a rapid gravity sand filter.
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When the filters are full of trapped solids, they are backwashed. In this process, clean water and air are pumped
back up the filter to dislodge the trapped impurities, and the water carrying the dirt (referred to as backwash) is
pumped into the sewerage system if there is one. Alternatively, it may be discharged back into the source river
after a settlement stage in a sedimentation tank to remove solids.
Chemical Treatment
Process
Water Treatment Process – Chemical Treatment Process

This method of water treatment process

utilizes the use of chemicals that reduces
the dispersed oil content in the effluent
water, which in turn, can also contribute to
the toxicity of them. Chemical water
treatment can be successfully used for the
removal of both toxic organic and inorganic
compounds.
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Chlorination
This method is done after filtration. In this
method, the water is disinfected to
remove any remaining pathogenic micro-
organism. It is known to be cheap and
easy to use.
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Chlorination
Upon contact with water, it immediately
reacts at any present contaminants. In some
cases during filtration, a certain amount of
chlorine is left after the process. This amount
is referred to as residual chlorine.
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Water Treatment Process – Chemical Treatment Process

Chlorination
The World Health Organization (2003)
required a maximum residual chlorine of 5
mg from 1 L of water and minimum of
0.5 mg from every 1 L of water after 30
minutes of contact time. Regardless, it
could still protect them from other forms of
microbial infections.
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Chlorination

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,

on the other hand, requires chlorine levels of
up to 4 mg/L or 4 parts per million for the
water to be safe for drinking.
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Chlorination

From the Administrative Order of the Philippine FDA under Philippine National Standards
for Drinking Water of 2017. It tells us the that:

• Water from mobile tanks should have chlorine residual of at least 0.5 mg/L but not
exceed to 1.5 mg/L at the point of delivery
• Bulk water supply shall maintain chlorine residual (as free chlorine) level between
0.3-1.5 mg/L or chlorine dioxide residual between 0.2-0.4 mg/L.
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Chlorination — What are the processes?

Chlorination can be done at any point of

time throughout the water treatment
process for each point of chlorine
application will take control of a different
contaminant
Chlorination can be
done at any point of
water treatment
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Chlorination — What are the processes?

Chlorine is added to raw water to

eliminate algae and other forms of
aquatic life from the water so they will
not cause problems in the later stage
of water treatment.
Water Treatment Process – Chemical Treatment Process

Chlorination — What are the processes?

Disinfection can also be done just before

filtration and after sedimentation. It may
also be done as the final step of the
treatment process.
Water Treatment Process – Chemical Treatment Process

Chlorination — What are the processes?

Chlorinating filtered water is more

economical because a lower CT value is
required. This is a combination of
concentration (C) and contact time (T).
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Chlorination — What are the processes?

Re-chlorination is sometimes done within

the distribution system to support and
maintain the chlorine residual
Water Treatment Process – Chemical Treatment Process

Other Examples under Chemical Water Treatment Processes

1. Lime Softening — it is a water treatment process that uses calcium hydroxide

(limewater) to soften water by removing calcium and magnesium ions. It is widely
used to adjust the pH level of water in preparation for future treatments.
2. The use of Hydrogen Peroxide — it is a bleaching agent commonly used to
whiten teeth, lighten hair, and on bleach fabrics. For water treatment, it is mainly
used as a disinfectant to remove pollutants and restrict the growth of any bacterial
agents.
Thank you!