Sedimentation

Other suspended (insoluble) particles, such as sand and dirt, are small enough to pass easily through the screens. These particles must be removed from the water by another process known as sedimentation (Figure 5). When water is allowed to sit, heavy suspended particles (e.g., sand) will settle to the bottom over time because they are denser than water. The water, now free of the suspended impurities, can be collected from the top without disturbing the layer of sediment at the bottom (which is eventually discarded).

Figure 5 Particles that are insoluble in water may be suspended in the water, particularly if the water is turbulent (stirred up). If the particles are heavy enough, they will settle to the bottom when the water is allowed to sit still over time.

Sometimes the insoluble particles are too small to settle out quickly enough to use sedimentation alone. Two processes, known as flocculation and coagulation, are used to create larger particles that will settle quickly to the bottom. In flocculation, small particles with non-rigid surfaces are made to agglomerate by mixing the water (and thus bringing the particles into contact with one another so that the surfaces can become stuck together). When the agglomeration of the particles gets large enough, the aggregate can settle in still water by sedimentation. Other suspended particles do not agglomerate well by flocculation. To remove these particles from the water, coagulation must be used. Coagulation is the process of gathering particles into a cluster or clot, often achieved by the addition of special chemicals known as coagulants. The most common coagulant used in water-treatment facilities is aluminum sulfate (alum, Al₂(SO₄)₃). Other Al and Fe salts, including poly-aluminum chloride, ferric chloride, and ferric sulfate, may be used as well. These salts react with ions naturally found in the water to produce a solid precipitate (Equation 2). As this precipitate forms, other particles are caught in the solid, forming a mass that will settle to the bottom via sedimentation (Figure 6).

(2)

Figure 6 When coagulants such as Al2(SO4)3 are added to the water supply, they form solid precipitates (green), as shown in Equation 2, above. These precipitates catch other impurities (red) in the water, forming a solid mass containing the precipitate formed by coagulation and the trapped impurities. This mass will settle to the bottom by sedimentation, and the water (with the trapped impurities now removed) can be drained off of the top.