Coagulant dose as an operating parameter in a solid contact clarifier

Abstract

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the applicability of the laboratory flocculation test (Jar Test) for a solid contact clarifier. Cohesivity, a parameter characterizing the sludge blanket can be established by determining the Sludge Cohesion Coefficient (SCC) by conducting a Sludge Cohesion Test (SCT). A series of laboratory tests were performed using the Jar Test and SCT. Considering the large number of variable parameters involved with natural raw water, sludge samples were prepared using synthetic raw water with varying turbidity and coagulant dose combinations. A comparison was made between the optimum coagulant dose obtained using the two tests. Highest SCC observed at the optimum coagulant dose was within the range of 0.6–3.3 m/hr. Low SCC values indicate a light and fragile sludge blanket whereas high SCC values indicate a quick settling consistent blanket. With increasing raw water turbidity, the optimum coagulant dose given by SCT is lower than that of the Jar Test. Hence, at higher raw water turbidity occurrences, it may be possible to operate the upward flow solid contact clarifiers with lower coagulant dose. A significant quadratic relationship is observed between the optimum coagulation doses with R2 = 0.9 and α < 0.05.