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steady flow, sediment concentration increases with slope length and will finally
approach that
capacity is related to slope gradient and inflow rate. Based on the experiments thus
made, a
method was advanced to compute the detachment rate of sediment loading water
flow, under
the assumption that the flow and soil are behaving the same way along rills. Then
detachment
At the beginning of the experiments the suspension is placed into the settling
column. It is
homogeneous and well dispersed. The particles then start to settle down as
individual flocs or
particles, as in this early stage of free settling, they are not hindered by other
particles or flocs.
However, as the particles or flocs approach each other, the settling of each particle
will be
of time, the settling particles can be seen as a single body undergoing compaction.
n free settling, the flocs begin to move individually at quite high speeds and in
unsystematic
directions after the induction period. It can be observed that the amount of solid is
similar
traveling downwards and upwards. After a while, at the bottom of the container a
consolidated region is formed. This region can be seen with the naked eye. On top
of this
level is a region where the flocs became interconnected and fell as one floc right
from the start
of the experiment. At the very top region, it was observed that flocs flowed upwards
as a
result of the fluid flow from lower regions. When the liquid forces its way upward, it
has
preferred paths so that only a part of the bed appears to be supporting the upward
flow of
fluid. When the liquid flowing upward breaks the crevices between the larger
interconnected
flocs and passes between them, it picks up smaller solid particles in its way. Finally,
once the
crevices are formed there is a great deal of bunching and breaking of flocs that act
as a firmly
established passageway for the liquid flow. As the concentration increases, the
initial frantic
movement slows down and the solid particles come close together. After less than
an hour it
can be observed that streams carrying liquid and solid move upward within the bed
from the
upper part of the consolidated region. No channels were seen on the sediment
tubes. The volcanoes, as they appear when viewed in transparent settling columns
on the top of the
settling bed are shown in Figure 5.6. Besides the apparent channelling that exists in
the sludge
particles through the surface of volcanoes. Particles are deposited on top of the bed
(Figure 5.7) which changes the bed concentration.
Volcanoes on the slurry surface are formed as a result of the channeled section
having moved
the velocity of some flocs is expected to increase in order to fill the void left by
liquid that can
flow upward more freely through the channel (with less resistance). However, as the
liquid
also drags some solid with it, the average settling process will be slowed down, and
as a
result, the average floc velocity will probably decrease. Observations indicate that
reverse concentration gradients occur when the settling process
starts with higher initial concentrations. However, there is a limit to such high initial
concentrations, and if the experiment has too high an initial concentration, that is in
excess of
1000 g/l or so (ODonnell 1972), there is no time between the start of settling and
the
All values for four different concentrations (250 g/l, 500 g/l, 750 g/l and 1000 g/l)
from
experimental work are given in Appendix A (in the CD-ROM). The values of H versus
T, and
form at the bottom of the container and propagate upward to meet the zone of
initial
concentration. When the settling solids in lower layers move upwards through
channels in the
bed, reverse concentration gradients occur. They are caused by liquid finding
shortcuts
through the sediment bed. The liquid carries settled particles upwards to be
deposited near the
top of the compaction region. This region is just below the initial concentration. As
the solids
settle under these conditions the result is a reverse concentration gradient and the
concentration loci curves present S-shaped profiles. As this period continues, the
solid tends
to spread over several vertical layers of particles. After a certain period of time, the
concentration of solid in the upper region of the bed increases while it decreases in
the middle
levels.
The main purpose of plotting the concentration profiles (H-C) is to show the
distribution of
93
The profile is drawn as a series of curves of height versus slurry concentration with
time as
very early stage in the settling. Figure 5.9 shows the experimental results for an
initial
concentration of 250 g/l. Results show that the activities in the settling tube are
totally
different from the high initial concentration experiments. During mixing, particles
are randomly moving in the slurry and, due to low concentrations,
particles are not touching each other. When particles fall, they encounter slight
jostling at the
bottom and can change position and settle in a tightly packed pattern. In the early
period of
the settling process at low initial concentrations, the flocs mostly fall under free
settling. As
they are not hindered by neighboring flocs, they are likely to attain the maximum
possible
velocity which is the terminal velocity. Although the total volume of solids going
down
94
should be equal to the volume of liquid going upwards, due to the overall low
porosity, the
Figure 5.9 shows that the different concentrations build the layers at a very early
stage of the
process but they are not stable. Some layers start to form from the beginning of the
process
but then quickly disappear (for example, the 500 and 750 g/l curves merge with the
1000 g/l
curve). This type of instability could be observed for about 50 min, and thereafter
stable
Finally, near the end of the experiment, few concentration layers could be seen but
no
channels or reverse concentration gradients were seen to occur, and if the initial
concentration
was less than 200-250 g/l, no channels occurred. At the end of the settling, the bed
reached a
stable state with a more or less constant concentration distribution, as can be seen
from Figure
Figure 5.10 shows the behaviour of a 500 g/l initial concentration slurry. Unlike the
previous
case (Figure 5.9) with an initial concentration of 250 g/l where no reverse
concentration was
observed, the H-T graph of 500 g/l initial concentration clearly indicates the
occurrence and
position of reverse concentration gradients in the 1200 and 1300 g/l concentration
curves. The
shape of the constant-concentration lines of 1200 g/l and 1300 g/l show a particular
S-shape
behaviour indicating the same values of concentrations at different heights at the
same time.
The positions of the reverse concentration region, as can be seen from Figure 5.10,
was
between 30-50 cm from the bottom of the bed, and this phenomenon occurred
between 100
and 200 minutes after the experiment started. As mentioned before, two types of
settling
occur during batch sedimentation with respect to the initial concentration. In this
experiment
the initial concentration is higher than 300-350 g/l so the effective settling type is
different
95
settling behaviour can be clearly seen at the top part of the settling column, down
to a height
relatively higher heights and hence the solid particles have more and more space to
move
around and they can settle quicker. On the other hand, the lower region of the
settling bed
becomes more concentrated and the individual particles start to come in contact
with each
individually but collectively they act as a compacting bed. In the next stage of the
settling process, some form of dispersion or classification is seen to
occur near the surface of the formed bed. After approximately 100 minutes (Figure
5.10) a
large amount of solid starts to move from inside the settling bed to the top. The
distribution of
end of the experiment, the entire bed is seen to attain a constant concentration
distribution
with only a small gradient, and from Figure 5.10 an average value of 1500 g/l can be
estimated.
Figure 5.11 shows the behaviour for an initial concentration value of 750 g/l. The
settling
process takes longer than the 500 g/l initial concentration experiment
(approximately 700
minutes). The first changes in the settling process can be seen after 90 minutes.
The 900g/l,
1000 g/l and 1100 g/l lines show similar behaviour. The differences start to appear
in the 1200 g/l concentration line at the very bottom of the bed
in the first 30 minutes. The changes in concentration are clearly visible within 120
minutes. In
100 minutes the S-shaped curves start to appear showing reverse concentration
gradients.
Such reverse concentration gradients are found to take place at the middle of the
bed where
concentrations ranged from 1300 g/l to 1500 g/l. There is no such behaviour near
the top of
the bed where the concentration is less than 1200 g/l. The concentration layers
start to change
at 1300 g/l concentration. The H-T graph shows S-type curves in the 1400 g/l and
1500 g/l
concentration (1600 g/l), the bottom of the settling bed reaches the steady state
condition and
the concentration is fixed.
Figure 5.12 shows the results when a high initial concentration (1000 g/l) is used.
Hindered
settling can clearly be seen at the beginning of the settling process. Initially, before
the concentration reaches 850g/l, solid particles move randomly in the settling
tube, such that there are some dispersion effects. For the first 80 minutes, they
demonstrate
hindered settling in the suspension at the top of the bed. Channels form and behave
like tubes
in the bed and carry a large amount of solids upward. After 1400 g/l, the
concentration layers
in the settling bed start to change. Reverse concentrations appear in the bed. For
these
experiments, the settling bed becomes compact around 1450g/l. Therefore, the
reverse
concentration gradients and channels are seen at 1400 g/l, 1500 g/l and 1600 g/l.
For
In Figure 5.13, the H-C graph has been plotted at a low initial concentration of 250
g/l.
According to this graph, settling occupies some time in the settling tube prior to 42
minutes.
The initial concentration value line lies at the left of the plot. The time distributions
show
stable behaviour until 300 g/l. Most of the lines show a movement between 800 g/l
and 1300 g/l. There is an unusual
behaviour in the case of the 600 g/l and 1400 g/l concentrations. It is thought that
this
The H-C graph in Figure 5.14 demonstrates almost constant behaviour at times t
125
minutes, at the height of 60 cm, until the concentration is approximately 1300 g/l. It
can be
seen clearly that the concentration changes start at the early stage of experiment
(seen in the t
= 83 min curve). At later times, the S-shaped curve can be seen between 1300 g/l
and 1400 g/l
movement of the flocs, which suggests that the solid bed is unstable. In addition,
the H-C
graph indicates reverse concentration gradients between 1200 g/l and 1500 g/l
concentration
values. When the solid bed reaches 375 minutes, all material is in the bed, but a
reverse concentration gradient is still observed
The heights versus concentration results for 750 g/l are shown in Figure 5.15. The
top of the
bed is clearly seen by the discontinuities at about 1400 g/l. Small reverse
concentration
gradients arise at this concentration for times between 292 and 417 minutes,
indicating that
this phenomenon occurs at the top of the bed. Figure 5.16 shows the 1000 g/l
results. Due to high concentration, there is limited space for
settling and greater interaction between the particles, which results in the slurry
behaving as
one whole floc indicated by the similarity of the plots. At 42 minutes, the settling
material is
at about 925 g/l; at 83 and 125 minutes, there is a sharp decline at about 850 g/l
these results
are indicative that the settling material is also diluting. At 208 minutes and greater,
Figure
101
5.16 shows S-shaped curves for concentrations greater than 1400 g/l (the start of
the
compression zone), indicating reverse concentration gradients in the bed.
volcano formation in batch sedimentation. These effects can have large impacts on
settling
settling experiments, and the results used to predict batch sedimentation which was
then
involved will impact on better thickener designs and therefore reduce the costs of
recovery
processes.
6.2 CONCLUSIONS
between the experimental study and the mathematical model predictions. General
conclusions
124
are given here from the basis of observations of the settling bed and from
considerations of
The role of channels during batch settling is examined in order to understand their
importance
settling bed can affect the performance of thickeners but is not accounted for in
current
theories. Inspections showed that channels need an appreciable time to form and
usually
vanish towards the end of the batch test. Channels formed that were from 2 to 20
cm in length
and 0.5 to 3 mm wide. Channelling occurred in the fan region and at the top of the
compressing bed. Three types of channels (major, minor and local) were observed
by the
photographic study.
Part of this study was to demonstrate that channels of liquid carry solid particles to
the upper
reaches of the sedimenting bed. The major cause of channelling is the high-pressure
gradient
at the bottom of the bed and water bubbles in the settling bed. The fluid rising from
the
compression zone causes cracks through the bed. The most important factors that
cause
channelling are high initial concentration (up to 1000 g/l) and settling time. No
channelling
was observed in the 250 g/l experiment, confirming that there is a lower limit in the
initial
concentration for CaCO 3 suspensions below which no channels are formed. It has
been seen
in this study that channelling can occur only when the initial concentration is more
than or
equal to 500 g/l. This can be important information for design and operation of
batch settlers.
The second important factor was found to be time. Even when the initial
concentration was
This critical time, however, depended on the initial concentration. Higher initial
concentration
caused channelling to start earlier, bringing the critical time to 1.5 hours.
125
channelling starts, the liquid flowing upward in the channels carries the solids with
it, and
there is a net upward transportation of solid in the channelling region of the bed.
As with the channelling, no reverse concentration gradients were observed for the
250g/l
almost from the very beginning of settling. The significance of reverse concentration
gradients have been usually ignored and not counted for the mathematical
modelling by the
researchers.
The following are recommended as subjects for future studies regarding batch
sedimentation
speed camera. A problem in this work was changing the position of the camera and
lights to
follow the formation of channels, such that the process took a long time to capture
useful
photos. A circular rig could be set up around the experiment with the camera and
lights set up
on the rig to give more flexibility to the operator and allow more images to be taken
at any
Different types and doses of flocculants such as polymer types (Zetag, Magnafloc,
Superfloc),
detergents (Teepol) and electrostatic flocculating agents can be used with various
materials,
for example Kaolin, Calcium Oxide, Ferric Oxide, Limestone and Sandstone in batch
which can be used as a basis to identify the best flocculant include; settling time,
chemical
their effects, it can be shown which material, type and amount of flocculant is the
most
suitable.
A useful and practical set up would be to add a tank and mixer unit next to the
settling
column. The idea here would be to mix the material and liquid in the tank during
flocculation
and then transfer to the settling column using a low-shear pump. Thus efficient and
uniform
DISCUSSION
those in figure 3 (taken from Coulson and Richardson, 1991). Graph 1 shows that
rate of fall of
suspension height decreases with increasing concentration. That is, the rate of mass
settling
decreases with increasing concentration. According to the theory, this is due to an
increased
20
industries as long as the suspension to be settled is not too concentrated such that
the process
Graph 1 already shows that the rate of mass settling decreases with increasing
concentration.
Graph 3 shows that this rate of decrease of mass settling with increasing
concentration, is linear
in the linear hindered settling region. This linear relation can be used to determine
the mass
settling rate for any concentration suspension of the same substance and liquid.
The limiting concentration is the concentration at which the mass rate of solids is a
minimum.
For the 2.5% mass concentration suspension the limiting concentration was found
to be 2.84%
suspension the fastest rate of addition of solids that would be used depends on the
limiting
The main error/problem that occurred for this experiment was determining the
suspension
height, especially for the 2% and 2.5% mass concentration suspensions. For these
lower mass
concentration suspensions the suspension height was not well defined - there was a
cloud of
particles above the suspension height. This was probably due to the rapid decrease
in suspension
decreased slowly. As time progressed this cloud disappeared and the suspension
height became
more defined.
CONCLUSION
from plots of suspension height with time (sedimentation curves) for different mass
concentrations, and mass settling rate in linear hindered settling against mass
concentrations.
Plots showed that the rate of fall of suspension height decreased linearly, in the
linear hindered
21
The concentration at which mass settling rate of solids is a minimum for the 2.5%
mass
of the sedimentation curve for the 2.5% concentration suspension. The limiting
concentration
Effect of Concentration
Rate of sedimentation has an inverse relation with the concentration of particles. Greater the
concentration, smaller would be the rate and vice versa.
Particle Size
Greater the size of the particles, which is to be sediment, greater the gravitational force will act
upon it and vice versa. Force of gravity on the particle is given by the following mathematical
equation:
W = mg
Temperature
Temperature has an inverse relation with the sedimentation rate. High temperature means low
sedimentation rate. In order to increase the sedimentation rate temperature should be minimized.
Height Effect
In general the height of the initial suspension does not affect the rate of sedimentation. However,
in case of larger height, greater amount of sediment has to build up before the critical point.
Wall Effect
Provided the particle size to the tube diameter is not greater than 1:100, no wall effect s should
be apparent.
Fig. 4 shows the method used in this experiment to determinethe settling velocities at different
points. The slopes of thetangent lines at each point, which is equal to the settling velocityat the
point, were determined. In equation,(3)The exact values of the settling velocities of each trial are
shownin the appendix.From the y-intercept of the tangent lines in Fig. 4, the height
z
i
that the slurry would occupy at concentration
c
L
is determined.The
z
i
and
z
o
are given in the appendix.As the sedimentation process goes along, the concentration of the
solids region increasingly becomes more concentratedbecause the solids are getting more
compacted. As this happens,the settling velocity decreases as the concentration increases,
asshown in Fig. 5. Notice that the velocity decreases at almost aconstant rate when the
concentration is relatively low.Fig. 6 shows the trend of settling velocity as sedimentation
goesalong. It should be noted that there are regions wherein thevelocity is approximately
constant. The settling velocity alsoexperiences significant change. It can be seen that the
velocitydecreases as the sedimentation goes along, as is theoreticallyexpected. This is because
the hindered settling region isincreasingly becoming more concentrated as time goes on and
the nearer presence of the other particles slow each otherssettling velocity. The
velocity in the compression settling zoneis significantly less than that in the earlier
region. Fig. 5 alsoshows how the initial height (or volume) of the mixture affectsthe settling
velocity of the mixture. The sample with the highestinitial height (namely, tube 1)
had, in general, the fastest settlingrates compared to rates of the other samples
vs.
plot is the critical settling point, as illustrated in Fig. 7. Thecritical point is the point where a
single distinct interface formsbetween the clear liquid and sediment can be obtained. At thestart
of sedimentation, the solids have a concentration
c
o
andfree settling is observed. A tangent line is drawn at this part. Onthe other hand, another linear
behavior which is almosthorizontal is observed at the other end of the graph. A tangentline is also
drawn at this part. These lines are extended until theyintersect. The angle between these two lines
is measured and anangle bisector is used. The bisector is extended until it touchesthe curve. The
point of intersection is the critical point. Atangent line is made at the critical point. Extending
this linegives the value of the concentration and time at the critical point.(Foust, 1980
rom Fig. 8, it is observed that the sample with the highestvolume (or height) takes
longer to reach its critical point. Themain reason for this phenomenon is that the
time to reach thecritical point would be influenced by the amount of sedimentthat
has to settle as it reaches the critical point. Generally, this isthe only effect of
varying the height of the slurry can have.Initial height doesnt necessarily affect the
sedimentation rate.For the second part of the experiment, the objective was todetermine the
effect of initial concentration on sedimentationcharacteristics. Three samples of
kaolin-water slurry were madewith different concentration. It is expected that the
rate of descent of the solid-liquid interface is a function of localconcentration (Foust,
1980)
As observed from the Fig. 9, evident differences in their plotsare present. A linear
behavior is observed at the start of sedimentation although the sample with the
highest initialconcentration flattened out the quickest
DISCUSSION
concentration at which the mass rate of the solids is especially important for the
correct
the process industry. It is the major process employed by sewage water treatment
companies to
purify the water so that it can be released back into the environment without
causing an
minerals or solids as the raw materials or final products for their processes where
sedimentation
is used to recover these minerals or solids from suspensions. In this experiment the
sedimentation process carried out was a batch process and the analysis carried out
here is
concentrations of the suspensions were constant at 4%. Since the settling vessels
were long
cylindrical tubes that were vertically oriented, the vessel had little or no effect on
the rate of
which indicated that the rate of settling was the highest. The rate of settling then
fell off when
the consolidation started to form since the resistance to the flow of liquid increased
and the
height of the interface decreased. This is represented by the curved part of the
graph. In the final
consolidation region which is linear, the sediment settled the slowest since the
displaced fluid
When an x=y line was drawn from the origin, it was seen the ratio of the distances
of this line
from the 550mm curve to the origin and to the 650mm curve to the origin varied by
a constant
factor of approximately 1.2. The distance between the 650mm and 750mm curves
varied by
approximately the same factor of 1.2. It was expected that the distance between
the 750mm and
850mm graphs would vary by this same factor. However this was not obtained due
to errors
which may have occurred during the experiment. The height of the suspension
interface varied
11
with time by a constant factor of 1.2 and if this factor was known for two sets of
heights then the
curves for the 750mm, 850mm etc could be reproduced with needing experimental
data.
The settling velocity was found for the different suspensions over the region 300
500mm. It
calculated from the gradient of the tangents to these points on the height of the
suspension
interface vs time graph. From Figure 2, the general trend was that the velocity
decreased non-
linearly for the different heights of suspension examined. This was in agreement
with the theory
since as the settling progresses the upward movement of the liquid is reduced due
to the fact that
the some of the sediment begins to coagulate. This caused the area over which the
particles
moved to decrease thus the settling velocity decreased. The order of decreasing
settling velocity
was 550mm, 650mm, 750mm and 850mm respectively with the 550mm suspension
settling the
fastest and the 850mm suspension settling the slowest. Also the settling velocity
was a function
of height such that as the settling velocity decreased the height of the suspension
increased. Thus
The plot of suspension interface height vs time for the initial suspension height of
750mm,
Figure 3, was plotted to find the limiting concentration, C L and settling velocity, v L
at the critical
point. This was found by drawing tangents from the initial and final linear parts of
the
suspension height curve. A bisector was then drawn at the point where the tangents
intersected to
touch the suspension height curve at the critical point which corresponded to a
suspension
interface height H i . The tangent at the critical point was extended to cut the y-axis
at the point
*
i
critical point was obtained by calculating the gradient of the tangent to the critical
point. The
12
1. The chalk and water suspension was gently agitated for approximately 2minutes
by holding
the vessel at either end (stopper at the top to the base of the vessel) and turning it
through a
45 angle. This was to ensure that the suspension was thoroughly mixed.
2. Immediately after the suspension was agitated the suspension was quickly
replaced in the
3. The coloured chalk was used as the sediment and the back light on the apparatus
made it
4. One person measured the time for the duration of the experiment and another
person agitated
the suspension and measured the height of the interface so as to reduce errors due
to human
reaction.
5. Shaking of the table where the sedimentation apparatus was placed on was
avoided.
1. Errors occurred when measuring the height of the interface since there were
suspended
particles in this zone which made it difficult to actual determine the boundaries of
the
interface.
2. Settling started as soon as the agitation was stopped. Thus there was a time
delay when the
3. For the 850mm, the time delay was greater since this vessel was the heaviest
and took a
4. The degree of agitation was different for each of the suspensions since it was
manually done.
1. The apparatus had grooves which the vessels fit into to hold the vessels securely
while the
2. The equipment had a back light which made it easier to see the zones of settling.
3. Care was exercised when agitating the mixture since the vessel was made of
glass. Also the
vessel was held securely at the top (placing hand over the stopper) and bottom
during the
agitation.
13
4. Personal protective equipment such as safety glasses, laboratory coats and
closed footwear
were worn which were adequate for the experiment. Gloves were not needed for
handling
the suspension.
The following conclusions can be drawn from the analysis of the experiment:
1. The effect of the initial height of the suspension with a constant mass concentration of 4%
on the sedimentation characteristics was such that for each height the settling characteristics
varied by a constant factor of approximately 1.2. The suspension interface height varied with
the time linearly for the first an last periods but non-linearly during the middle period. This
trend was exhibited for the four suspensions used.
2. The results for the 850mm suspension were not as expected because settling which not
measured started before the vessel was replaced onto the apparatus.
3. The settling velocity varied in a non-linear decreasing manner with the height of the
interface where it was seen that the settling velocity decreased as the height of the interface
increased. Also, settling occurred the fastest for the 550mm, 650mm, 750mm and 850mm
suspensions respectively.
4. The limiting concentration at which the mass rate of the solids is a minimum (C L ) at an
initial height of 750mm was found to be 4.69% and the settling velocity (v L ) at this height
was found to be -0.0002239ms -1 .
5. The final settling heights for the 550mm, 650mm, 750mm and 850mm were 86mm, 102mm,
115mm and 128mm respectively.
Recommendations:
1. The apparatus should be equipped with an electric stirrer to eliminate the time delay when
replacing the cylinders onto the apparatus.
14
2. The time taken to measure the interface should be longer (about 1 minute) so that there
would be fewer particles in the interface making it easier to measure.
3. The suspension should be gently agitated so that the final consolidation of the sediment
would be more tightly packed.
4. The results should be trended while the experiment is being carried out so that any major
errors which occurred can be reduced by repeating the experiment as in the case of the
850mm suspension.
REFERENCES
Foust, A.S. (1980).
Principles of Unit Operations.
Singapore:John Wiley & Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd. pp. 629-636Geankoplis, C.J. (1993).
Transport Processes and Unit Operations.
Singapore: Prentice Hall. pp. 816-817, 820, 825McCabe, W.L. (2001).
Unit Operations of Chemical Engineering.
Singapore: McGraw-Hill Book Co. pp. 164, 168,1039-1040
J.M. Coulson & J.F. Richardson. Chemical Engineering Volume 2 (5 th Edition) Chapter
5.