Water Treatment Alum For Water Purification

Basic treatments for water purification have been documented in greek and sanskrit writings and egyptians used alum for precipitation as early as 1500 bce.

Water treatment alum for water purification. Raw water often holds tiny suspended particles that are very difficult for a filter to catch. Aluminum sulfate serves as a coagulant and flocculating agent in water treatment making the water easier to clean. In water treatment coagulation flocculation involves the addition of compounds that promote the clumping of fines into larger floc so that they can be more easily separated from the water. Alum causes them to clump together so that they can settle out of the water or be easily trapped by a filter.

Because hydrated lime is easily handled its use is preferable in the smaller water treatment purification plants where lime is required to supply additional. More about alum from other sources. Settling and decanting 2. Coagulation is a chemical process that involves neutralization of charge whereas flocculation is a physical process and does not involve neutralization of charge.

There are a variety of primary coagulants which can be used in a water treatment plant. Drinking water sources are subject to contamination and require. Water treatment 6 1 introduction water can be contaminated by the following agents. Pathogens disease causing organisms that include bacteria amoebas and viruses as well as the eggs and larvae of parasitic worms.

Alum can be bought in liquid form or in dry form. Alum can be bought in liquid form with a concentration of 8 3 or in dry form with a concentration of 17. Aluminum sulfate is also important for lake treatment and restoration. Harmful chemicals from human activities industrial wastes pesticides fertilizers.

Drinking water supplies in the united states are among the safest in the world. Filtration through sand 2. This document should prove useful to you as you consider pre treatment options to improve water clarity and acceptance of water treatment with sodium hypochlorite by the target population. When alum is added to water it reacts with the water and results in positively charged ions.

One of the earliest and still the most extensively used is aluminum sulfate also known as alum. Moringa seed flocculation 3. However even in the u s drinking water sources can become contaminated causing sickness and disease from waterborne germs such as cryptosporidium e. Filtration through a cloth 1 2.

It is readily soluble in water. The coagulation flocculation process can. Historical evidence suggests that water treatment was recognized and practiced by ancient civilizations.