INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

COURSE: WATER TREATMENT

SEDIMENTATION IN WATER
TREATMENT
NAME: NGUYEN LAI THANH TRUC
ID: EVEVIU17004
  AN OVERVIEW
1. Definition of Sedimentation process.
2. The principle of Sedimentation.
3. Purpose of Sedimentation.
4. Types of Sedimentation.
5. Types of Sedimentation basin.
6. Parameters influencing Sedimentation.
 WHAT IS THE SEDIMENTATION ?

- Sedimentation is one of the steps of water treatment process,

particles in suspension to settle out of the fluid water in which these
particles are entrained and come to rest against a barrier, water
has little or no movement.

- The suspended solids sink to the bottom under the forces of

gravity, centrifugal acceleration or electromagnetism and form
sediments.
 PRINCIPLE OF SEDIMENTATION
- In water, suspended solids, which have a greater specific gravity, tend to
settle down by gravity as soon as the turbulence is retarded by offering
storage. (specific gravity of inorganic suspended solids: 2.65; specific gravity
of organic suspended solids: 1.04)
- Particles having specific gravity of about 1.20 are so readily settle down at the
bottom of tank. For lighter particles, it is difficult to cause the settlement.
- Settling down of particles at the bottom of sedimentation tank is known as
hydraulic subsidence and every particle has its own hydraulic settling value
which will cause its hydraulic subsidence.
- Basin in which the flow is retarded is called sedimentation basin. Theoretical
average time for which the water is detained in the settling tank is called the
detention period
 PRINCIPLE OF SEDIMENTATION

- In water treatment, sedimentation can be used to reduce the concentration of

suspended particles before applying the flocculation process to reduce the
amount of chemicals in the necessary flocculation process and after flocculation
and can deposit cotton.
- When sediment deposition is applied after flocculation, its purpose is usually to
reduce the concentration of suspended solids so that subsequent filtration can
work most effectively.
- In drinking water treatment, flocculation is added to the water before settling to
facilitate the settlement process, followed by filtration and other treatment steps.
- In modern wastewater treatment, primary sedimentation must be followed by
secondary treatment (eg, activated sludge filter) to increase cleaning efficiency.
 PURPOSES OF SEDIMENTATION

 To settle the sludge (biomass) after activated sludge

process / tricking filters.
 To remove coagulated and flocculated impurities.
 To remove coarse dispersed phase.
 To remove precipitated impurities after chemical
treatment.
 SEDIMENTATION IN WATER TREATMENT

- Plain settling of surface waters prior to treatment by a rapid sand

filtration plant.
- Settling of coagulated and flocculated waters prior to rapid sand
filtration.
- Settling of coagulated and flocculated waters in a lime – soda type
softening plant.
- Settling of treated waters in an iron or manganese removal plant.
 SEDIMENTATION IN WASTEWATER
TREATMENT

- Grit or sand and silt removal.

- Suspended solids removal in primary clarifiers.
- Biological floc removal in activated sludge final clarifiers.
- Humus removal in trickling filter final clarifiers.
 TYPES OF SEDIMENTATION
4 types of Sedimentation:
 Type I: Discrete particle settling
• Particles are discrete and do not interfere with one another during settling
because the concentration is low and they do not flocculate.
 Type II: Flocculant Particles
• Suspensions consist of particles that can adhere to each other if they bump
into each other (i.e., they are capable of flocculating). As particles aggregate
and grow in size, they can settle faster.
 Type III: Hindered or Zone settling
• The mass of particles tends to settle as a unit with individual particles
remaining in fixed positions with respect to each other.
 Type IV: Compression
• The concentration of particles is so high that sedimentation can only occur
through compaction of the structure.
TYPES OF SEDIMENTATION
 TYPES OF SEDIMENTATION BASIN
- Sedimentation tank may function either intermittent or
continuously.
- The intermittent type tank are those which store water for a
certain period and keep it on completely rest.
- In continuous type tank , the flow velocity is only reduced and
water is not brought to complete rest.
- Sedimentation tank or basin may be either circular or rectangular
are commonly used, the choice is based on local conditions,
economics, and personal preference.
- Long narrow rectangular tanks with horizontal flow are generally
preferred to the circular tank of radial or spiral flow.
Typical conventional sedimentation tanks
 Parameters in designing conventional
sedimentation basins
 Overflow Rates (Q):
- Higher rates for warmer water with heavier suspended solids.
- Lower rates for colder water with lower turbidity or that are high in organic
color or algae.
 Detention time (t):
- This is usually not an important design parameter.
- Requirement for detention periods of 4h.

 Basin depth and velocities:

- Basin depth affects flow – through velocity, which must be low
enough to minimize scouring of the settled floc blanket.
- Velocities of 2 to 4 ft/min (0.6to 1.2 rn/min) usually are
acceptable for basin depths of 7 to 14 ft (2.1 to 4.3 m).
 ZONES OF SEDIMENTATION BASIN

 Sedimentation basins have 4 zones:

1. The Inlet zone.
2. The Settling zone.
3. The Sludge zone.
4. The Outlet zone.
1.The Inlet Zone:

- The two primary purposes of the inlet zone of a sedimentation basin

are to distribute the water and to control the water’s velocity as it
enters the basin.
- Inlet devices act to prevent turbulence of the water. The incoming flow
in a sedimentation basin must be evenly distributed across the width of
the basin to prevent short-circuiting.
- In addition to preventing short-circuiting, inlets control the velocity of
the incoming flow. If the water velocity is greater than 0.15 m/s, then
floes in the water will break up due to agitation of the water. Breakup
of floes in the sedimentation basin will make settling much less
efficient.
2. The Settling Zone:
- Water enters the settling zone where water velocity is greatly reduced.
- The bulk of settling occurs and this zone will make up the largest volume of the
sedimentation basin.
- For optimal performance, the settling zone requires a slow, even flow of water.
The settling zone may be simply a large area of open water.
3. The Sludge Zone:
- The sludge zone is found across the bottom of the sedimentation basin where
the sludge is collected temporarily .
- Velocity should be very slow to prevent resuspension of sludge.
- A drain at the bottom of the basin allows the sludge to be easily removed from
the tank. The tank bottom should slope toward the drains to further facilitate
sludge removal.
- In some plants, sludge removal is achieved continuously using automated
equipment. In other plants, sludge must be removed manually.
4. The Outlet Zone:
- The outlet zone controls the amount of water flowing out of the sedimentation
basin and be designed to prevent short-circuiting of water in the basin.
- A good outlet will ensure that only well-settled water leaves the basin and
enters the filter. The outlet in the form of overflow weir can also be used to
control the water level in the basin.
- The best quality water is usually found at the very top of the sedimentation
basin, so outlets are usually designed to skim this water off the sedimentation
basin.
 RECTANGULAR SEDIMENTATION BASIN

• Rectangular basins are the simplest design, allowing water to flow

horizontally through a long tank This type of basin is usually found in
large-scale water treatment plants.
• Rectangular basins have a variety of advantages such as predictability,
cost-effectiveness, and low maintenance. They are the least likely to
short-circuit, especially if the length is at least twice the width. The inlet
and outlet arrangements of rectangular basis are shown below.
• A disadvantage of rectangular basins is the large extent of land area
required.
CIRCULAR SEDIMENTATION BASIN
Square and circular sedimentation basins with
horizontal flow are often known as clarifiers. This type
of basin faces short-circuiting problems
- The top-drive circular
mechanisms used for sludge
cleaning have no bearings
under water, resulting in
longevity with little
maintenance.
- Some circular basins are
designed for rim feed with
clarified water collected in
the center.
- Most circular basins used
today are the center-feed
type.
 PARAMETERS INFLUENCING
SEDIMENTATION

 Size, shape and weight of particles.

 Viscosity and temperature of water.
 Detention period of tank.
 Effective depth of tank.
 Area of tank.
 Surface over flow rate.
 Velocity of flow and outlet design.

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