Iron coagulants

With aluminum sulfate, optimum coagulation efficiency and minimum floe solubiUty normally occur at pH 6.0—7.0. Iron coagulants can be used successfully over the much broader pH range of 5.0—11.0. If ferrous compounds are used, oxidation to ferric iron is needed for complete precipitation. This may require either chlorine addition or pH adjustment. 

Ghurye, G., Clifford, D. and Tripp, A. (2004) Iron coagulation and direct microfiltration to remove arsenic from groundwater. Journal of American Water Works Association, 96(4), 143-52. 

In the Eimco study (18,19), a 100 gpm pilot plant in Salt Lake City, UT, USA, was constructed for the evaluation of PAC treatment of raw sewage. The pilot plant was operated for 16 mo to evaluate lime, alum, and ferric iron coagulation as well as single-and two-stage countercurrent carbon treatment processes. The chemically treated effluent then flowed to the carbon contactors, which could be operated either as a single-stage (parallel) treatment process or a two-stage countercurrent (series) treatment process. PAC was fed and maintained as concentrated slurry. 

Usually, in a conventional coagulation-filtration process for arsenic removal, the addition of the coagulant is followed by a short rapid-mix step followed by a slow-mix step for flocculation. Flocculation is usually followed by sedimentation and filtration. To do away with the multitude of steps required in the conventional process, the authors designed and tested a simplified iron coagulation-direct mi-croflltration process, as described below (3,4). 

The feasibility of iron coagulation-microflltration was first demonstrated by Chang et al. (26). This study used a static mixer (for the rapid-mix step), a flocculation step (20 min) followed by microflltration. Fe(III) doses as high as... 

Figure 13 Results of extended iron coagulation-microfiltration tests on a groundwater in Albuquerque, NM. (From Ref. 3.)...

The cake produced by the digestion is extracted with cold water and possibly with some diluted acids from the subsequent processes. During the cake dissolution it is necessary to maintain the temperature close to 65°C, the temperature of iron sulfate maximum solubiUty. To prevent the reoxidation of the Fe " ions during processing, a small amount of Ti " is prepared in the system by the Ti reduction. The titanium extract, a solution of titanium oxo-sulfate, iron sulfate, and sulfuric acid, is filtered off. Coagulation agents are usually added to the extract to faciUtate the separation of insoluble sludge. 

Chemica.1 Remova.1. Phosphoms can be precipitated with lime to form Ca2(P0 2- The actual composition of the precipitate is a complex compound called apitate. Achieving minimum phosphoms concentrations requires a pH in excess of 10.5. Alum or iron will precipitate phosphoms as AIPO4 or FePO. This procedure is generally employed in conjunction with the activated sludge process, in which the coagulant is added at the end of the aeration basin or between the aeration basin and the final clarifier. 

Table 1 Hsts a number of common inorganic coagulants. Typical iron and aluminum coagulants are acid salts that lower the pH of the treated water by hydrolysis. Depending on initial raw water alkalinity and pH, an alkah such as lime or caustic must be added to counteract the pH depression of the primary coagulant. Iron and aluminum hydrolysis products play a significant role in the coagulation process, especially in cases in which low turbidity influent waters benefit from the presence of additional colHsion surface areas.

Soluble iron or aluminum carryover ia the clarifier effiueat may result from inorganic coagulant use therefore, elimination of the inorganic coagulant can minimise the deposition of these metals ia filters, ion-exchange units, and cooling systems. 

Both iron and aluminum are particulady troublesome because of their abiUty to act as coagulants. Also, their soluble and insoluble hydroxide forms can each cause precipitation of some water treatment chemicals, such as orthophosphate. Airborne contaminants usually consist of clay and dirt particles but can include gases such as hydrogen sulfide, which forms insoluble precipitates with many metal ions. Process leaks introduce a variety of contaminants that accelerate deposition and corrosion. 

Both ions can be removed by oxidation and subsequent filtration. Aeration is adequate for iron(II) oxidation at above pH 6, but the oxidation of manganese(II) is much too slow, even at higher pH values, for effective removal. Potassium permanganate or chlorine dioxide is frequently used for the oxidation of manganese however, their use must be foHowed by coagulation prior to filtration because of the formation of coHoidal Mn02. 

Chemical precipitation can remove 95 percent of the suspended solids, up to 50 percent of the soluble organics and the bulk of the heavy metals in a wastewater. Removal of soluble organics is a function of the coagulant chemical, with iron salts yielding best results and lime the poorest. Metal removal is primarily a function of pH and the ionic state of the metal. Guidance is available from solubihty product data. 

Color None Decaying organic material and metallic ions causing color may cause foaming in boilers hinders precipitation methods such as iron removal, hot phosphate softening can stain product in process use Coagulation, filtration, chlorination, adsorption by activated carbon... 

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