2/18/2019 Assessment of Coagulants for Water Treatment

Assessmentof Coagulants for Water Treatment

ReportNo WSAA 41

May 1992

SYNOPSIS

Theaim of the project was to produce an independent assessment of coagulants,coagulant aids and flocculant aids
available in Australia for the treatment ofdrinking waters.

Theterms coagulation and flocculation are often confused and interchanged.Coagulation involves the chemical
destabilisation of particles, whereasflocculation involves the physical transportation of destabilised particlesresulting
in particle collision and floc formation.

Suppliersof coagulation and flocculation products provided samples for laboratoryevaluation together with technical
and operational information. Each productwas categorised according to its chemical structure.

Theeffectiveness of each product was based on performance in laboratory tests inthree district raw water types,
medium colour/medium turbidity, high colour/lowturbidity and low colour/high turbidity. The optimum dose of a
particularproduct was the minimum dose required to achieve the following treated waterquality objectives.

Turbidity : <0.50 NTU

Colour : <10 HU

Aluminium : <0.2 mg/L

Iron : <0.3 mg/L

Manganese : <0.1 mg/L

Theassessment of products was divided into three sections, coagulants,coagulant aids and flocculant aids.

Effectivecoagulants treat waters on their own, ie they are cationic species thatcan destabilise particles in water. Both
inorganic and organic coagulants wereassessed and compared with aluminium sulphate or alum, the most widely
usedcoagulant.

Ofthe inorganic coagulants tested, only polyaluminium chloride (PACI), ferricsulphate and ferric chloride were
possible alternatives to alum. Metal iondoses required to satisfy treated water objectives compared with that for
alum.However, aluminium chloride, sodium aluminate and ferrous sulphate were notrecommended as alternative
coagulants to alum because they required high metalion levels to satisfy treated water objectives and pH correction for
effectivecoagulation.

Thefour different types of organic coagulants tested, polydadmac, polyamine,epi/dma and polyacrylamide polymers
performed best in low colour/high turbiditywaters. They showed limited ability to remove colour but were very
effectivefor turbidity removal. Therefore, unless the raw water was low in colour, thefour polymer types were not
considered viable alternatives to alum inconventional water treatment.

However,commercially available inorganic salt-polydadmac polymer blends, whichsatisfied all treated water
objectives, were recommended as possible alumalternatives.

Coagulantaids are designed to partially replace coagulants, in particular inorganiccoagulants by assisting in the
coagulation process. All liquid cationicpolymers tested, polydadmacs, polyamines and epi/dmas performed well as
partialreplacements for alum in all water types. Their use at doses of up to 1.0 mgactive polymer/L enabled the
required alum dose to be reduced to as low as 60%of the optimum level. However, only polydadmac polymers were
recommended ascoagulant aids as polyamines and epi/dmas are not approved for use inAustralia. Cationic
polyacrylamides were effective coagulant aids only in lowcoloured waters.
http://www.fwr.org/wsaa/wsaa41.htm 1/2
2/18/2019 Assessment of Coagulants for Water Treatment

Non-ionicand anionic polyacrylamides, anionic latex emulsions and activated silica,which did not satisfy treated water
objectives, were not recommended ascoagulant aids.

Thereis a distinct difference between coagulant aids and flocculant aids.Coagulant aids assist in particle
destabilisation by charge neutralisation andtherefore assist in colour and turbidity removal. Flocculant aids, however,
canonly assist in the physical process of flocculation. They reduce turbidity byinter-particle bridging but do not affect
the removal of colour.

Theuse of polymers as flocculant aids offer a number of benefits which are notapparent in small scale laboratory
testing. For example, polymers increase therate of flocculation, produce larger, denser floc that settles faster
andstrengthen the floc which helps improve filtration. They enable a greatervolume of water to be treated in a given
plant size. Their use is alsoimportant during periods when flocculation becomes difficult because of waterquality
changes or because of the effect of low temperatures.

If turbidity removal is the major criterion bywhich flocculant aids are judged, then cationic polyacrylamides and
activatedsilica were more effective than non-ionic and anionic polyacrylamides andanionic latex emulsions. However,
as their true benefits are measured infiltration plant performance, no product should be discounted without fullscale
assessment.

Copiesof the Report are available from WSAA, price $A50. Orders may be placed throughthe Bookshop at
www.wsaa.asn.au or by email to info@wsaa.asn.au.

http://www.fwr.org/wsaa/wsaa41.htm 2/2