The Advantages of Dissolved-air

Flotation for Water Treatment

Thomas Za be1

Dissolved-air flotation as a primary clarification stage for the production of potable water is Design parameters for flotation pIaNts
particularly effective for the treatment of algae-laden waters and low-turbidity, highly colored A dissolved-air flotation (DAF) plant,
waters. Flotation has several process advantages over sedimentation-it can produce better shown in Figure 1, consists of a facility
water quality; it can be operated at high surface loadings, resulting in relatively small and to mix the coagulation chemicals with
shallow plants; and it can be started up quiclcly, with a steady water quality being achieved the raw water and a mechanical floccula-
within 45 min. Also, the solids concentration of the sludge produced is significantly higher tion stage, followed by the flotation tank.
(about 3 percent) than that of sludge produced by sedimentation. This article discusses the Part of the treated water is recycled,
design parameters for dissolved-air flotation plants and gives detailed information on the pressurized, and saturated with air in a
design of flocculation and flotation tanks, the air saturation system, the production of packed tower. The recycled water is
microbubbles, and the different sludge removal systems that can be used. Performance data introduced to the flocculated water
are given for flotation plants used for clarification of several raw waters, with special emphasis stream via a bank of air injection nozzles.
on the treatment of algae-laden waters and low-turbidity, highly colored waters. A cost Across the nozzles the pressure is reduced
comparison between flotation and sedimentation is also presented, taking into account both to atmospheric pressure, releasing the
capital and operating costs. The overall costs of the two processes are similar. Therefore, the air in the form of fine bubbles. The air
final process selection will depend on the additional advantages offered by both processes. bubbles attach themselves to the floes
and the bubble-floe agglomerates rise to
Sedimentation is the most widely used settling rates. Because of these problems, the surface of the flotation tank and are
primary clarification stage before rapid dissolved-air flotation has attracted removed as floated sludge either by
gravity filtration for the production of considerable interest in recent years as flooding or mechanical scraping. The
potable water. However, many raw water an alternative to sedimentation. The residence time in the flocculator is be-
sources contain low-density particles Water Research Centre in the United tween 12 and 20 min and in the flotation
such as algae, which, because of their Kingdom has developed dissolved-air tank approximately 10 min, giving a
tendency to float, cause problems in the flotation from bench-scale experiments total treatment time of between 20 and
sedimentation stage. In particular, nu- to 26-L s-1 pilot plantsi- and has found 30 min. Because of the relatively short
trient-rich stored waters that may con- the process to be very effective for the residence time in the flotation plant, the
tain heavy algae blooms are difficult to clarification of algae-laden and low-tur- process can be started up quickly and a
treat by sedimentation. In addition, bidity, highly colored waters. Dissolved- steady treated water quality can be
treatment of low-turbidity, soft, highly air flotation has become accepted as an achieved within 45 min.
colored waters produces very light floes alternative to sedimentation in the Pretreatment for flotation. No signif-
that settle very slowly. Therefore, sedi- United Kingdom, with more than 20 icant difference has been found between
mentation plants can operate only at plants in operation or under construc- the chemical requirements for flotation
relatively low surface loadings, and tion. There are also a large number of and those for sedimentation, except that
costly flocculation aids such as polyelec- flotation plants in the Scandinavian polyelectrolytes are not required for
trolytes are needed to increase the countries. flotation. Flotation is more susceptible,
Copyright (C) 1985 American Water Works Association
42 MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS JOURNAL AWWA
however, to over- or underdosing because The maximum size of the flotation 30 min of accumulation. The most
of the short residence time in the plant. tank is determined by hydraulic condi- appropriate device for such an application
The coagulant dosage and optimum pH tions and the design of the sludge re- is a full-length scraper operating at a
required for treatment can be determined moval device. Tanks with surface areas removal frequency that does not allow
from jar test experiments or by trials in in excess of 861 sq ft (80 m*) are in the sludge to remain on the flotation
the flotation plant itself. The chemicals operation. The nominal retention time tank surface for longer than 30 min. The
must be thoroughly and rapidly mixed in the flotation tank is between 5 and 15 optimum scraper speed for this applica-
with the raw water; some form of in-line min, depending on the loading (upflow tion in terms of treated water quality
mixing is preferable to the use of flash rate) and depth of the flotation tank. and sludge solids concentration was 0.028
mixers. If both a coagulant and pH The flotation tank must be covered fps (30 m/h), producing a sludge of 1
adjustment chemical are required, it is because both rain and wind can lead to a percent solids concentration.
important, especially when treating soft, breakup of the floated sludge. Also, the On the other hand, the sludge produced
colored waters with a low buffering sludge that accumulates on the surface from turbid river water or stored algae-
capacity, that good mixing of the first of the tank will freeze. laden water is very stable; accumulation
chemical with the raw water is completed Sludge removal. The sludge accumulat- of sludge for more than 24 h does not
before the second chemical is added. ing on the flotation tank surface can be result in sludge breakup and a deteriora-
Before the coagulated impurities can removed either continuously or inter- tion in treated water quality. Sludge
successfully be removed by flotation, mittently by flooding or mechanical beach scrapers have been used success-
flocculation into larger agglomerates scraping. Flooding involves raising the fully for these applications, producing a
(floes) is required. The flocculator con- water level in the flotation tank suffi- sludge solids concentration in excess of 3
sists of a tank usually divided into two ciently, by closing the treated water percent with littledeterioration in treated
equal-sized compartments, each agitated outlet, for sludge and water to overflow water quality. This sludge was suitable
by a slow-moving paddle. A flocculation into the sludge collection channel. The for filter pressing, producing a cake
time of 20 min is usually sufficient. In end weir of the flotation tank can also be solids concentration between 16 and 23
addition to flocculation time, the degree lowered to allow the sludge and water to percent without polyelectrolyte addition.
of agitation is also important. This can flow into the sludge collection trough. For optimum operation in terms of
be expressed by the mean velocity gra- The flooding method has the advantages treated water quality and sludge solids
dient G, calculated by of low equipment cost and minimal effect concentration, beach scrapers should be
on treated water quality, but at the operated continuously, the water level
expense of high water wastage (up to 2 in the flotation tank should be adjusted
percent of plant throughput) and very close to the lower edge of the beach, and
in which P = total power input/unit low sludge solids concentration (less a thin continuous sludge layer (about 0.4
volume and p = dynamic viscosity. than 0.2 percent). Therefore with this in. [lo mm]) should be maintained on the
Tests have indicated that the optimum sludge removal method, one of the surface of the flotation tank.
G value for surface water treatment is advantages of flotation, the production Equipment costs for sludge removal
approximately G = 70s1, which com- of a sludge with a high solids concentra- systems can be significant (as high as
pares with an optimum Gvalue for hori- tion, is lost. lo-20 percent of the total plant cost)$
zontal sedimentation of between 10 and If a sludge with a high solids content therefore it is important to select the
20. In addition, the tip speed of the (l-3 percent) is desired, a mechanical most appropriate and cost-effective re-
paddles should not exceed 1.64 fps (0.5 sludge removal system that draws or moval system for a particular application,
ms-1) to avoid excessive shear and pushes the sludge into the collection Air release devices. Devices used for
breakup of the floc.‘ j trough must be installed. The most the release of the air from the recycle
Research- has shown that hydraulic widely used mechanical sludge removal stream range from proprietary nozzles
flocculation, in which the energy re- devices are (1) part- or full-length scrap and needle valves to simple gate valves.
quired for flocculation is imparted by the ers, which use rubber blades that travel Under highly turbulent conditions pres-
water flowing through the flocculator, over the surface of the flotation tank and sure should be reduced suddenly in the
can be used instead of mechanical floc- push the sludge over the beach into the device to achieve effective air release.
culation.7 Half the flocculation time was collection channel; and (2) beach scrap- Air must be released very close to the
needed with a baffled tank flocculator ers, which consist of a number of rubber point where the recycled water is mixed
than with mechanical flocculation; how- blades that scrape sludge only from the with the flocculated water to minimize
ever, the G value had to be increased sludge beach. As sludge is removed, the loss of air bubbles resulting from
from 70 to 15Os-1. sludge from the remainder of the flotation coalescence. The amount of recycled
Flotation tank design. Although circular tank surface flows toward the beach. water should be controlled by the size of
tanks are used primarily for smaller The beach scrapers, especially if operated the air release device. Experiments have
installations, most treatment plants are continuously, reduce the danger of sludge shown that if the amount of recycled
designed with rectangular flotation breakup during the removal process water is regulated by a valve upstream
tanks. Flotation tanks are normally de- because the sludge is minimally dis- of the pressure release device, the pres-
signed with a depth of approximately 5 ft turbed. Beach scrapers also have fewer sure drop across the valve is sufficient to
(1.5 m) and upflow rates between 0.0072 moving parts than full-length scrapers. release some of the air. This leads to
and 0.011 fps (8 and 12 m/h), depending If a part- or full-length scraper is used, bubble coalescence, which results in a
on the tank surface area. The flotation it is important to select the correct loss of air bubbles and a larger deteriora-
tank is equipped with an inclined baffle frequency of sludge removal and travel- tion in water quality than would be
(60 degrees to the horizontal) at the inlet ing speed of the scraper to minimize the expected from an equivalent reduction
side of the tank to direct the bubble-floe deterioration in treated water quality in the amount of recycled water. The
agglomerates toward the surface and to due to sludge breakup. velocity of the stream of recycled water
reduce the velocity of the incoming water Selection of the most appropriate leaving the air release device should be
so that there is minimal disturbance of sludge removal system depends on the low enough to avoid floe breakup.
the sludge layer accumulating on the water to be treated. For example, expe The Water Research Centre has devel-
water surface. The gap between the top rience has shown that for cases in which oped a patented air injection nozzle9 that
of the baffle and the water surface is a soft, highly colored water was treated, consists of two orifice plates to reduce
about 1 ft (0.3 m). the sludge started to break up after only the pressure and to create turbulence,
MAY 1985 THOMAS ZABEL 43
Copyright (C) 1985 American Water Works Association
 2 Phnt fbw m--29x 703 galih ,108 mJihl
7-4 0 0 13-Ill 13 IS-mm, nozzle
6 0 0 I,-,n ,278.mm “ OLLle
n 009-m 82 ,&mm nozzle
%3
2
h2
z
B
$1
c
.6 0
r 4 6 8 10 12
5
ii A,, Ad&d to Raw wster-glm-1
aled
d
Figure 2. Effect of quantity of air
nozzle added on quality of flotation-treated
Figure 1. Schematic diagram of a flotation plant for potable water treatment water

200
100
p2: 150 w-
jj F
I
78 $
0 100 74
1 50 B
: =E 80-
s P2
: 50 4
P
4 Flaw
waterAlgae
count Rawwater
0 0 0 A,“ rnl”Coagulant
SuItate
“ rn C*L,mL--MmOCySflS T” rbldlty--nf”
70- 40000 35-41
Figure 3. Algae removal by flotation .. Al” rnl” “Sulfate
Chlorinated
PACI nl Sulfate
ferrous
120000
120
48000
55-59
55-5
369
and sedimentation I I I I I
0 10 20 30 40 5.0 60 Al” rnl” “ rn
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 IrOn
Coagulantoose--mgiL
Figure 4. Comparison of the effectiveness of three coagulants on algae removal

TABLE 1
Comparison of qualities achieved with flotation, sedimentation, and jiltvation
Turbidity Dose Color Iron Manganese Aluminum
Type of Water ntu mg Fe/L “ Hazen PH mg Fe/L mg M&L tug Al/L
Raw 3.2 45 6.2 0.70 0.11 0.23
Flotation-treated* 0.72 8.5 2 4.8 0.58 0.16 0.01
Flotation-filtered 0.19 9.0 0.01 0.02 0.01
Sedimentation-treated 0.50 6.0 + 0.8 mg 0 5.05 0.36 0.14 0.10
polyelectrolyte/l
Sedimentation-filtered 0.29 0 10.5 0.01 co.02 0.10
*Improved flotation-treated water quality similar to that achieved with sedimentation was obtained by increasing the flocculation time from 12 to 16 min.

and a shroud section to decrease the
velocity of the stream of recycled water
before it is mixed with the flocculated
water. The size of the first orifice plate,
which is the smallest, controls the
amount of recycled water added to the
flotation tank. More than 95 percent of
the bubbles produced by the nozzle were
in the size range lo-120 pm, with a mean
size of about 40 pm.
Air saturation system. Because the air
saturation system constitutes approx-
imately 50 percent of the power cost of
the flotation process, it is important to
optimize the design of the recycle system
to minimize the operating costs.
44 MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS
Various methods are employed for
dissolving air under pressure in the
recycle stream. These include sparging
the air into the water in a pressure
vessel (saturator), trickling the water
over a packed bed, spraying the water
into an unpacked saturator, entraining
the air with ejectors, and injecting the
air into the suction pipe of the recycle
pump. Tests have shown that the packed
saturator system has the lowest ratio of
operating cost to saturation level
achieved.iOJi A possible disadvantage of
using packings is the danger of blockage
because of biological growth. It is un-
likely, however, that biological growth
Copyright (C) 1985 American Water Works Association
would pose problems because the loading
rates of saturators (between 0.038 and
0.076 fps [ 1000 and 2000 ms m-z d-i]) are
far greater than typical biological filtra-
tion rates (less than 0.00038 fps [lo ms
m-z d-i]) and any growth is likely to be
sloughed off before blockage of the media
can occur. Problems with biological
growth have not been observed thus far.
Extensive research has been done on
optimizing the design of packed satura-
tors.” It has been shown that the
saturator could be operated over the
range 0.01-0.076 (300-2000 ms m-z d-i)
without any decrease in saturation
efficiency. Higher rates were not inves-
JOURNAL AWWA
tigated because of equipment limitations.
A packing depth of 0.8 m of 25-mm TABLE 2
polypropylene rings,* the least expensive Comparison of the algae removal efficiency offlotation and sedimentation using chlorinated
packing material investigated, was suffi- ferrous sulfate as coagulant
cient to achieve 100 percent saturation.
Quantity of air required for flotation. The
amount of air supplied to the flotation
tank can be varied by changing either ~~
the recycle flow rate or the saturator
pressure. Experiments varying the re-
cycle rate by using different nozzle sizes
and saturator pressures have shown ‘ Aluminum sulfate was used as the coagulant.
that the treated water quality is de- TABLE 3
pendent only on the total amount of air Example operatingcosts* of a 6-mgd (22. PML/d) flotation plant with a 95.percent loadfactor
supplied and not on the individual values
of pressure and the recycle rate employed Fixed Charges? Annual Cost
(Figure 2). With a packed saturator, an Xl000 Xl000 Water Cast
operating pressure of between 50 and 60 Cost Parameter $ e $ E $/gal #Z/m3
psi (350 and 420 kPa), and a recycle rate
civil engineering structures-
of between 7 and 8 percent corresponding 30.year plant life,
to about 8-10 g air/m3, water treated 10% interest rate, 10.6%
was adequate for optimum performance.5 amortization rate 197 180$ 20.93 19.1 0.0026 0.0024
The quantity of air required for the Mechanical plant--20.year plant
life, 10% interest rate, 11.75%
treatment of raw surface waters depends amortization rate 175 160s 20.60 18.8 0.0026 0.0024
only on the total quantity of water Power for saturation at 58 psi
treated and is independent of the sus- (400 kPa); with 7% recycle,
pended solids present, unless the sus- plus flash mixing,
flocculating, chemical mixing
pended solids concentration is very high and dosing, and sludge
(> 1000 mg/L). The air to solids ratio at removal (estimate 13 000
approximately 380 mL of air to gram of Btu/mgd [22 kW +h/ML]) at
solids is much higher for surface water 3.2 p/kW * h 6.04 5.51 0.0008 0.0007
Chemicals-average dose 7 mg
treatment than for activated sludge as Fe/L and sodium hydroxide
thickening (15-30 mL of air to gram of for pH adjustment 24.00 21.9 0.003 0.0028
solids).12 The large amount of air required Labor-operator, quality control
for surface water treatment is probably (1 work year with overhead) 8.77 8.0 0.001 0.001
Maintenance-fitter (l/4work
necessary to ensure adequate collisions year) and materials 6.58 6.0 0.0009 0.0008
between floe particles and air bubbles to Total 86.92 79.31 0.0110 1.0101
facilitate attachment before separation. *These costs are exclusive of raw water and high-lift pumps, sludge disposal facilities, and all buildings.
tConversion factor: 1 f = 1.0960$
Performance of dissolved-air flotation $For concrete, flash mixing, flocculating and flotation tanks, plus foundations for saturators
plants §For mechanical plant flash mixing, flocculating, flotation, chemical mixing and dosing, manual
control, and nominal coverage of flotation tanks
Extensive studies on both pilot- and
full-scale plants have been conducted on
the performance of the dissolved-air periods but better quality (by -1-2 ntu) the performance of the plant and ranged
flotation process with different raw for raw water turbidities r 100 ntu. between 4.5 and 5.5. To remove the
waters. The types of raw waters inves- The selection of the correct coagulant manganese, the pH of the water was
tigated include lowland river water; soft, dosage and coagulation pH was critical raised to 9.5 before filtration. Ferric
highly colored, stored upland water; and during flood conditions. Because of the sulfate was used as coagulant and lime
nutrient-rich, long-term stored water short residence time in the flotation or caustic soda for pH adjustment.
with algae problems. Detailed perfor- plant, the changes in raw water quality Table 1 shows a comparison of the
mance data have been given elsewhere.5*6 had to be followed closely to maintain qualities achieved for flotation-treated,
Treatment of lowland river water. Pro- optimum coagulation conditions. sedimentation-treated, and filtered wa-
vided the optimum operating conditions Although the river water could be ters. The flotation plant was operated at
were used, flotation could cope with raw treated successfully by flotation provided 0.011 fps (12 m/h) upflow rate, whereas
water turbidities of up to 100 ntu, yield- adequate supervision was available, the floe-blanket sedimentation plant
ing treated water turbidities rarely ex- sedimentation is the more appropriate could only be operated at less than
ceeding3 ntu at the design upflow rateof treatment process for this application. 0.0009 fps (1 m/h), even with the addition
0.011 fps (12 m/h). When raw water Treatment of soft, highly colored, stored of polyelectrolyte, because the floes
turbidity exceeded 60 ntu, the treated upland water. The raw water for the plant produced by the coagulation of these
water quality could be improved signif- originated from an upland catchment waters are lightweight and have low
icantly by reducing the flow rate through area. The turbidity rarely exceeded 4 settling velocities. The quality of the
the plant by about lo-20 percent. The ntu and, after filtering through a 0.45- waters treated by the two processes was
color was reduced from as much as 70” pm membrane filter, the color was up to quite similar. Only the residual coagula-
Hazen to less than 5’ Hazen, and the 70” Hazen. The water was soft with an tion concentration of the sedimentation-
residual coagulant concentrations before alkalinity and total hardness of usually treated water was usually lower by
filtration were in the range 0.25-0.75 mg less than 5 mg/L and 30 mgas CaCOs/L, about 0.2 mg Fe/L. By increasing the
Al/L. An upflow floe-blanket sedimen- respectively. The raw water also con- flocculation time from 12 to 16 min,
tation plant operated at an upflow rate of tained iron (0.2-0.8 mgFe/L), aluminum however, the residual coagulation con-
0.0018 fps (2 m/h) produced similar (0.2-0.3 mg Al/L), and manganese (O.l- centration in the flotation-treated water
treated water quality to that of the 0.3 mg Mn/L).
flotation plant during the low-turbidity The coagulation pH was critical for *Pall rings, Norton. Akron, Ohio

MAY 1985 THOMAS ZABEL 45

Copyright (C) 1985 American Water Works Association
was reduced to that of the sedimenta-
tion-treated water. When the raw water
temperature fell below 39°F (4“ C), which
was frequently the case during the
winter, it was difficult to maintain a
stable floe blanket in the tanks, resulting
in a deterioration of treated water qual-
ity. The flotation plant produced consis-
tent quality at all temperatures.
Treatment of nutrient-rich, long-term
stored water with algae problems. The
emphasis on raw water storage in the
management of water resources in the
United Kingdom has led to the construc-
tion of raw water storage reservoirs.
Severe algae growth has been experi-
enced on some of the storage reservoirs
that contain nutrient-rich water, which
has occasionally resulted in the closure
of the existing sedimentation water
treatment plants.
Table 2 shows the algae removal effi-
ciency of flotation and upflow floc-
blanket sedimentation for different spe-
cies. All algae species were more effi-
ciently removed by flotation. At times
the algae counts in the flotation-treated
water were lower than those in the
sedimentation-filtered water (Figure 3).
Efficient flocculation is essential for
effective algae removal. When the flota-
tion plant was operated without coag-
ulant addition, algae removal was re-
duced to between 10 and 20 percent.
Figure 4 shows a comparison of the algae
removal rates achieved by three different
coagulants at their optimum pH for
minimum coagulant residuals. Alumi-
num sulfate gave the best removal. For
polyaluminum chloride(PACl), an equiv-
alent dosage in terms of aluminum was
required to achieve an algae removal
similar to that of aluminum sulfate. The
poorest treated water quality was ob-
tained with chlorinated ferrous sulfate.
Tests have shown that algae removal is
improved by lowering the pH. The poorer
algae removal achieved with chlorinated
ferrous sulfate might have been a result
of the higher coagulation pH required
(8.3-8.7 for ferrous sulfate, compared
with 6.8-7.2 for aluminum sulfate).
Filtration of flotation-treated water
Tests comparing the performance of
rapid gravity sand filters fed with flota-
tion-treated water and upflow floc-blan-
ket-clarified water have shown that these
waters had similar filtering characteris-
tics, provided the water going to the
filters had similar turbidities and resid-
ual coagulant concentrations. The pres-
ence of air bubbles in the flotation
treated water has no influence on the
filter performance.
Cost of flotation
Local circumstances can have a sig-
nificant influence on the cost of a par-
ticular process; e.g., energy costs vary
substantially in different countries. A
46 MANAGEMENT AND OPERATIONS
cost comparison of flotation with floc-
blanket clarification, the most widely
used primary treatment process in the
United Kingdom, has shown that the
overall costs of the two processes are
similar. Flotation tends to have lower
capital costs but higher operating costs
than sedimentation. Thus low plant
utilization during the winter would favor
flotation.
Any cost comparison, however, should
take into account additional process
advantages such as better treated water
quality (when treating algae-laden wa-
ters), greater flexibility of the plant,
shorter startup time (approximately 45
min for flotation), easier sludge handling,
no need for polyelectrolyte dosing, the
need to build only shallow tanks (between
4 and 5 ft [1.2 and 1.5 ml), and the
compact size.
From the limited cost data available,
the capital costs for flotation plants can
be expressed corrected to prices for the
fourth quarter of 1982 asI
Capital cost = 23 X area0.52
in which the capital cost is in 2 1000 and
the area is that of the flotation tank
alone, in square metres. Costs do not
include any substantial buildings.
Estimated operating costs for a 6-mgd
(22.7-ML/d) plant are given in Table 3.
The most significant cost factor in Table
3, apart from the fixed charges, is the
cost of chemicals. Thus, although energy
consumption is an important factor and
is higher for flotation than for floc-
blanket sedimentation, it is not the
dominant factor.
Conclusions
Flotation is particularly effective for
the treatment of stored water that con-
tains heavy algae loads or for low
turbidity, highly colored waters. Flota-
tion has several process advantages
compared with floe-blanket sedimenta-
tion, including better treated water
quality, rapid startup, a high rate of
operation, and theproductionof a thicker,
more easily treatable sludge.
Theoverall costs for flotation and floc-
blanket sedimentation are similar.
Therefore the final process selection
depends on the additional advantages
offered by the different processes.
Flotation has been accepted in the
United Kingdom as an alternative to
floe-blanket sedimentation for water
treatment, with more than 20 plants in
operation or under construction.
Acknowledgment
The author thanks the Water Research
Centre for permission to publish this
article.
References
1. PACKHAM, R.F. & RICHARDS,W.N. Water
Copyright (C) 1985 American Water Works Association
Clarification by Flotation: 2. A Laboratory
Studv of the Feasibilitv of Floe Flotation.
Tech: Rept. TP 88, Water Res. Assn.,
Medmenham, UK (1972).
2. PACKHAM, R.F. & RICHARDS, W.N. Water
Clarification by Flotation: 3. Treatment
of River Thames Water in a Pilot-Scale
Flotation Plant. Tech. Rept. TR 2, Water
Res. Centre, Medmenham, UK (1975).
3. HYDE, R.A. Water Clarification by Flota-
tion: 4. Design and Experimental Studies
on a Dissolved-air Flotation Pilot Plant
Treating 8.2 m3/h of River Thames Wa-
ter. Tech. Rept. TR 13,Water Res.Centre,
Medmenham, UK (1975).
4. ZABEL. T.F. & HYDE, R.A. Factors In-
fluencing Dissolved-air Flotation as Ap-
plied to Water Clarification. Proc. Conf.
on Flotation for Water and Waste Treat-
ment, Medmenham, UK (1977).
5. REES, A.J.; RODMAN, D.J.; & Z~BEL, T.F.
Water Clarification by Flotation: 5. Re-
sults From Five 95.m3/h Plants Oueratina
on Different Raw Waters. Tech. Rep<
TR 114, Water Res. Centre, Medmenham,
UK (1979).
6. ZAB~L, T.F. & MELBOURNE,J.D. Flotation.
Developments in Water Treatment, vol. 1
(W.M. Lewis, editor). Applied Science
Publishers Ltd., London (1980).
7. RODMAN, D.J. Investigation Into Hy-
draulic Flocculation With Special Em-
phasis on the Removal of Algae. Master’ s
thesis, Water Research Centre. Steven-
age, UK (1982).
8. ROWLANDS,H.S. Sot. Chem. Ind. Sym. on
Princinles and Practice of Flotation
(1977).-
9. British patent specification no. 1444026
and 1444027.
10. BRATBY, J. & MARAIS, G.V.R. Flotation.
Solid-Liquid Separation Equipment
Scale-up (D.B. Purchas, editor). Uplands
Press, Croydon, England (1977).
11. REES, A.J.; R~DMAN, D.J.; & ZABEL, T.F.
Evaluation of Dissolved-air Flotation
Saturator Performance. Tech. Rept. TR
143. Water Research Centre. Medmen-
ham, UK (1980).
12. MADDOCK, J.L. Research Experience in
the Thickening of Activated Sludge by
Dissolved-air Flotation. Proc. Conf. on
Flotation for Water and Waste Treat-
ment, Water Res. Centre, Medmenham,
UK (1977).
13. Cost Information for Water Supply and
Sewage Disposal. Tech. Rept. TR 61,
Water Research Centre, Medmenham,
UK (1977).
About the author:
Thomas Zabel has
been conductingwater
research for nine
years, five of which
have focused on dis-
solved-airflotation for
water treatment. Zabel
is a member of the
Institution of Chemical Engineers and
the Institution of Water Engineers and
Scientists. He has been published pre-
viously byJournal IWES and Aqua. Zabel
is currently section head, sewage treat-
ment, at the Water Research Centre, Elder
Way, Stevenage, Hertfordshire, UK.
JOURNAL AWWA