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Background
Coagulation is a process that facilitates settling of suspended solids by neutralizing the charge of
these small particles. Moreover, it precipitates soluble compounds such as phosphates to remove
them from the effluent.

Maynilad facilities that dose a coagulant after aeration are the following: South Septage, Bahay
Toro, Kapiligan, Del Monte, and San Antonio Water reclamation facility (WRF). Except for South
Septage, all the WRFs mentioned mainly utilize coagulation to improve settling of solids since these
facilities use an attached growth process called MBBR (Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor) for their
secondary treatment process; solids that do not attach to the media have low densities and must be
flocculated to allow them to settle. On the other hand, coagulant is dosed in South Septage mainly
for phosphorous removal.

Currently, the coagulant being used in all these facilities is polyaluminum chloride (PAC). The
properties of the PAC being procured are as follows:
 Chemical type: liquid
 Concentration: 9-10% Al2O3 (by weight)
 Color/appearance: clear to slightly hazy
 Specific gravity: 1.17-1.20
 Solids content: 30%
 Basicity: 35-50%

Other types of coagulants such as aluminium chlorohydrate (ACH), ferric chloride (FeCl 3) and PAC with
different Al2O3 concentrations are currently not being used for coagulation in Maynilad WRFs.

This study aims to assess the performance of other potential coagulants to determine which
coagulant is best given the quality of water post-aeration of the different WRFs mentioned above.
The specific objectives of the study are as follows:
a) To pre-select top 5 coagulants per facility based on their pH and color compliance to DAO standards
b) To determine the optimum dosing (mL coagulant/L of post-aeration effluent) of the top 5 coagulants
in terms of TSS (Bahay Toro, Kapiligan, Del Monte, San Antonio), and PO 4-P (South Septage)
c) To choose the best coagulant each facility based on the lowest optimum dose.

For the study, twenty-five (25) liquid coagulant samples from seven suppliers were sent to the team
for trials. Table 1 summarizes the relevant properties of the coagulant samples. As shown in the
table, the supplied coagulants are either organic, aluminium or ferric-based.

Once the best coagulant has been determined in terms of post-coagulation water quality, the study
must proceed to cost analysis to determine whether savings will be possible with a change of
coagulant. For this purpose, the team may opt to do the cost analysis on the top 3 or top 5
coagulants.
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Table 1. Properties of coagulant samples sent to PDE.

Coagulant Al2O3 or FeCl3 based? Weight percent Specific pH
(%) gravity
Aluminum Chlorohydrate Al2O3 24.02 1.34 3.0-5.0
(ACH)
Chemical Research
PAC yellow liquid Al2O3 7.88 1.17 3.44
Chemical Research
PAC white liquid Al2O3 9.61 1.19 2.02
Chemical Research
Ferric chloride liquid FeCl3 41.67 1.40 <1
Chemical Research
PACL white Al2O3 - - -
HYPER KEM
PACL dark yellow Al2O3 - - -
HYPER KEM
ACH Al2O3 - - -
HYPER KEM
Alum Al2O3 - - -
HYPER KEM
Ferric chloride FeCl3 - - -
HYPER KEM
AdClear 1120 Al2O3 9.32 1.22 2.26
AdClear 1121 Al2O3 11.06 1.22 4.71
AdClear 1122 Al2O3 10.78 1.21 2.00
AdClear 1123 Al2O3 10.50 1.22 3.86
AdClear 1124 Al2O3 10.32 1.22 4.09
AdClear 1125 Al2O3 10.32 1.22 4.08
AdClear 1129 Al2O3 - - -
Terrased NL 63 (ACH) Al2O3 23.63 1.34 3.62
Terrasol A-121 (PAC) Al2O3 - 1.24 3.07
Terrasol F-213 (FeCl3) FeCl3 38-40 1.40 -
PAC Type 3 Al2O3 28.50 - 4.0
FAZFLOC PSW 4610 - - - -
FAZFLOC PSW 4620 - - - -
FAZFLOC PSY 4610 - - - -
FAZFLOC PSY 4620 - - - -
Zeoturb - - - 3.0-4.5

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Methodology
Pre-selection of coagulants
This step is important to obtain a shortlist of suitable coagulants without consuming excessive
laboratory resources for analysis. Top 5 performing coagulants in terms of treated water quality
after dosing of coagulant will be selected. The following shall apply:
 pH ≥ 6.7
 color ≤ 130 TCU

Materials
 Twenty (25) coagulant samples
 At least 25-L post-aeration (coagulant dosing point) water sample from each facility
 Four (4) graduated cylinders (10-25 mL)
 Four (4) Micropipettes (30-850 microliter)
 One (1) jar tester
 One (1) 1-L graduated cylinder
 Four (4) 1-L beakers
 Colorimeter
 pH meter

Procedure
1. Obtain at least 25 liters of post-aeration water sample from the facility.
2. Determine the volume of coagulant to be dosed on 1-L sample using the recommended dose of the
facility summarized in table 2 below.
3. Dose the coagulant and stir the mixture for 1 minute at 300 rpm using the jar tester.
4. Analyze the color and pH of the mixture sample and record them using table 3 below.
5. Coagulants that lead to above 130 TCU color and below 6.7 pH are automatically considered
unsuitable for the facility. Only the top 5 coagulants leading to highest pH after dosing will proceed
to coagulant dosing optimization.

Table 2. Recommended coagulant dose. Based on current PAC brand.

Facility Minimum recommended dose (mL/L Reference
or L/m3)
South Septage 0.85 [PDE-PE-2022-05] South Septage
PACl Dosing Assessment
Kapiligan 0.03 [PDE-PE-2020-21, 22, 23] PAC
dosing optimization
Del Monte 0.03 [PDE-PE-2020-21, 22, 23] PAC
dosing optimization
San Antonio 0.08 [PDE-PE-2020-21, 22, 23] PAC
dosing optimization
Bahay Toro 0.03 [PDE-PE-2020-14] Supplementary
Information.pdf

PTM-OP-PDE- MAYNILAD WATER SERVICES, INC. | 11 ROAD A. VETERANS VILLAGE, PROJECT 7, MUNOZ, QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES
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Table 3. Color and pH of 1 L sample after coagulant dosing.

Facility:
Volume (mL) of coagulant dosed:
Coagulant Color (TCU) pH
Aluminum Chlorohydrate (ACH)
Chemical Research
PAC yellow liquid
Chemical Research
PAC white liquid
Chemical Research
Ferric chloride liquid
Chemical Research
PACL white
HYPER KEM
PACL dark yellow
HYPER KEM
ACH
HYPER KEM
Alum
HYPER KEM
Ferric chloride
HYPER KEM
AdClear 1120
AdClear 1121
AdClear 1122
AdClear 1123
AdClear 1124
AdClear 1125
AdClear 1129
Terrased NL 63 (ACH)
Terrasol A-121 (PAC)
Terrasol F-213 (FeCl3)
PAC Type 3
FAZFLOC PSW 4610
FAZFLOC PSW 4620
FAZFLOC PSY 4610
FAZFLOC PSY 4620
Zeoturb

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Coagulant dosing optimization

This step is important to determine the optimum dose of the top 5 coagulants selected from the
previous step. The following criteria will be used in determining the optimum dose:
 Color, pH, COD, TSS, and PO4-P must be within the applicable DAO standard
 Lowest TSS (for Kapiligan, Del Monte, San Antonio, and Bahay Toro)
 Lowest PO4-P (for South Septage)

Materials
 Five (5) coagulant samples
 At least 21-L post-aeration (coagulant dosing point) water sample from each facility
 Four (4) graduated cylinders (10-25 mL)
 Four (4) Micropipettes (30-850 microliter)
 One (1) jar tester
 One (1) 1-L graduated cylinder
 Four (4) 1-L beakers
 Colorimeter
 pH meter
 TSS analysis (Spectrophotometer)
 COD LR vials (21 per facility) and reactor
 PO4-P analyzer

Procedure
1. Obtain at least 21 liters of post-aeration water samples from the facility.
2. Prepare four different volumes of the coagulant using micropipettes. Suggested values in table 4 may
be used. Dosing 1 will be the control sample and should have no dosing.
3. Place four 1-L post-aeration samples in the jar tester and label them accordingly (indicating the dose
and the coagulant name).
4. Dose the coagulant volume corresponding to each sample as labelled and immediately start the jar
test sequence:
a. 300 rpm for 1 minute
b. 70 rpm for 5 minutes
c. 50 rpm for 5 minutes
d. 30 rpm for 10 min
5. After jar test, allow solids to settle for 10 minutes. Collect supernatant and analyze the following
parameters: color, pH, TSS (spectrophotometric), and COD (LR) analysis. Record values in table 5
below.
6. Interpret results and choose the best coagulant and dosing for the facility.

Table 4. Suggested dosing values for each facility.

Suggested Dosing (mL/L)
South Septage Kapiligan Del Monte San Antonio Bahay Toro
1 0 0 0 0 0
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2 0.28 0.015 0.015 0.04 0.015

3 0.56 0.030 0.030 0.08 0.030
4 0.85 0.045 0.045 0.12 0.045
5 1.12 0.060 0.060 0.16 0.060

Table 5. Data sheet for coagulant dosing optimization.

Facility:
Coagulant (product name):
Dosing Color pH COD TSS PO4-P
(mL/L) (TCU) (mg/L) (mg/L) (mg/L)
1
2
3
4
5

Summary of samples

Table 6. Summary of parameters to be analyzed

Pre- Dosing Number of Grand
  selection Optimization facilities Total
Color (TCU) 25 21 5 230
pH 25 21 5 230
COD (mg/L) - 21 5 105
TSS (mg/L) - 21 5 105
PO4-P (mg/L) - 21 5 105

Timeline
Table 7. Coagulation study timeline
July August September Octobe November
r
South 46 color
46 pH
Septage 21 TSS
21 COD
21 PO4-P
Kapiligan 46 color
46 pH
21 TSS
21 COD
21 PO4-P
San Antonio 46 color
46 pH
21 TSS
21 COD
21 PO4-P
Del Monte 46 color
46 pH
21 TSS
21 COD
21 PO4-P
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Bahay Toro 46 color
46 pH
21 TSS
21 COD
21 PO4-P

PTM-OP-PDE- MAYNILAD WATER SERVICES, INC. | 11 ROAD A. VETERANS VILLAGE, PROJECT 7, MUNOZ, QUEZON CITY, PHILIPPINES
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