INTRODUCTION

Water to be supplied for public use must be potable i.e., satisfactory for drinking
purposes from the standpoint of its chemical, physical and biological
characteristics. Drinking water should, preferably, be obtained from a source free
from pollution. The raw water normally available from surface water sources is,
however, not directly suitable for drinking purposes. Waste water consists of
carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulphur which lead to various diseases. The term
treatment means removal of toxic or otherwise dangerous substances which
are likely to disturb the biological cycles.The obective of water treatment is to
produce safe and potable drinking water.
fig.!anal from water comes
They can be broadly categori"ed into three different groups #on the basis
of tasks involved$.
%. &hysical method
'. !hemical method
(. )iological method
Physical method
When it comes to physical wastewater treatment, following physical processes
are used for the treatment of water instead of resorting to chemicals or biological
means.
* Sedimentation
*
Wherein coarse screening of waste water is done to remove contaminating obects after
allowing them to settle at the base, when heavy contaminants settle down, the removal of
cleared effluent or waste stream becomes relatively easy.
Aeration
*
Wherein air is added to the wastewater physically in order to provide oxygen to the
contaminated water.
Filtration
*
Wherein the contaminated water is passed through various filters to separate the
contaminating solids from the water. +and filter is by far the most common filter used in
this process.
Chemical method
,s opposed to physical treatment of water, chemical treatment involves the
use of chemicals to get rid of contaminants in it.
-arious methods are used to treat water chemically, they are following.

Chlorination
/n this process, chlorine 0 a strong oxidi"ing chemical, is used to kill the
bacteria which lead to decomposition of water.
fig.!hlorination of raw water
* Oxidization
*
This is a chemical water treatment method, wherein oxidi"ing agents 0 such as o"one,
are used to treat polluted water. These oxidi"ing agents make water reusable by
hampering the biological growth process of bacteria which happens to be the main
cause of decomposition of water.
* Neutralization
*
When it comes to industrial wastewater treatment, a chemical process known as
1eutrali"ation is 2uite common.
This process involves adding acid or base to the water to adust its p3 value and bring it
back to neutral level.
4ime #!a5$, commonly known as 2uicklime or burnt lime, is one of the best examples of
base used in the process of neutrali"ation to neutrali"e acid wastes.
* &olyvalent metals, i.e. metals having more than one valence, are very
often used as coagulating chemicals in sewage treatment.
* /ron and other metals containing compounds like ferric sulfate and
aluminum sulfate are some of the best examples of coagulants.
Bioloical method
/n biological water treatment processes, bacteria and other such
microorganisms are used to biochemically decomposes the wastewater and
stabili"es the end product.
)iological water treatment is further categori"ed into two sub0divisions as
following.
* Aero!ic "rocess
*
/n the aerobic process, bacteria consume the organic matter and helps convert it to
carbon dioxide in the presence of oxygen.
Anaero!ic "rocess
*
/n the anaerobic process, on the other hand, sludge is fermented at a particular
temperature in the absence of oxygen.
#AST$ #AT$R TR$AT%$NT AND
PUIRFICATION STA&$S
Treatment and purification stages are categori"ed as following.
%. &rimary treatment
'. +econdary treatment
(. Disinfection
6. +ludge treatment
Primary treatment
&rimary treatment uses both physical as well as chemical method.
* Screenin cham!er
*
The incoming wastewater, called influent, passes through screens consisting of upright
bars, spaced one to three inches apart. These bars remove large pieces of trash
including rags, sticks, newspaper, soft drink cans, bottles, plastic cups and other similar
items. This protects the main sewage pumps and other e2uipment. The garbage is
transported to landfills. The main sewage pumps then lift the wastewater from the
screening chamber to the surface level of the plant.
The wastewater enters primary settling tanks, also called sedimentation tanks, for one
to two hours.
fig.+creening chamber
Coaulation
*
The materials which are suspended or found in the colloidal form in raw water or
influent are removed by coagulation.
+ubstance that is used to carry out coagulation is called coagulant.
* The most important coagulants are.
o,l
'
#+5
6
$
(
7%63
'
5 or ,l
'
#+5
6
$
(
7%83
'
5#alum$
o 9e!l
(
o 9e!l
(
#with lime$
o 9e
'
#+5
6
$
(
#with lime$
o 9e+5
6
7:3
'
5 #copperas$ #with lime$
* Alum or aluminium sul"hate
*
When alum is added to waste water in alkaline medium,aluminium hydroxide is
precipitated out as reaction shows following.
;
'
+5
6
.,l
'
#+5
6
$
(
7'63
'
5 <(!a#53$
'
(!a+5
6
<',l#53$
(
<;
'
+5
6
<'63
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5
+o, suspended particles get adsorbed on the surface of gelatinuous aluminium
hydroxide.
* Ferric salts
*
9erric salts are commonly used as coagulants but they are difficult to handle because an
insoluble ferric oxide is produced in the p3 range from ( to %(.
* 'ime
*
The water may contain calcium and magnesium salts which make water hard. /t is
treated by adding lime in waste water as shown by reactions.
* Partially treated (aste (ater and "rimary slude
*
The flow of the water is slowed, allowing heavier solids to settle to the bottom of the
tank and the lighter materials to float.
The settled solids, called primary sludge, are then pumped through cyclone degritters
= devices that use centrifugal force to separate out sand, grit #such as coffee grinds$
and gravel. This grit is removed, washed and taken to landfills.
*
o The degritted primary sludge is pumped to the plant>s sludge handling facilities for
further processing.
o The partially treated wastewater from the primary settling tanks then flows to the
secondary treatment system.
Secondary treatment
+econdary treatment uses chemical, physical and biological methods.
The partially treated wastewater from the primary settling tanks then flows to the
secondary settling tanks which are termed to be as aeration tanks #also called
biological reactors or bubbling tanks$.
+econdary treatment is also called the activated sludge process.
Aeration
,ir pumped into large aeration tanks by means of aeration e2uipments which
are in following forms and any of them can be used according to process
feasibility .
* +urface aerators
*
!ompressors connected to submerged air diffusers
*
/n this process, air is passed through partially treated waste water and following
effects occurs such as.
* ?emoval of dissolved foul smelling 3
'
+
*
?emoval of 5rganosulpur compounds
* ?emoval of -olatile organic compounds
* +ome organic materials are oxidi"ed with air and !5' is produced
* ?emoval of remaining organic materials by passing water over activated carbon
* ,eration process also oxidi"es water soluble 9e
<'
to 9e
<(
which then forms insoluble 9e#53$( and is separated as solid
*
,eration e2uipments mix the wastewater and sludge that stimulates the
growth of oxygen0using bacteria and other tiny organisms that are naturally
present in the sewage.
These beneficial microorganisms consume most of the remaining organic materials
that are polluting the water and this produces heavier particles that will settle later
in the treatment process.
Wastewater passes through these bubbling tanks in three to six hours,
producing sludge which is called activated sludge.
The aerated wastewater then flows to the final settling tanks called clarifier which
are similar to the primary settling tanks. 3ere the heavy particles and other solids
settle to the bottom as secondary sludge. +ome of this sludge is re0circulated
back to the aeration tanks called return sludge which stimulates the activated
sludge process.
The returned sludge contains millions of microorganisms that help maintain the right
mix of bacteria and air in the tank and contribute to the removal of as many
pollutants as possible.
The remaining secondary sludge is removed from the settling tanks and added
to the primary sludge for further processing in the sludge handling facilities.
Wastewater passes through the settling tanks in two to three hours and then flows
to a disinfection tank.
Disin)ection
@ven after primary and secondary treatment, disease causing organisms may
remain in the treated wastewater.
Chlorination
To disinfect and kill harmful organisms, the wastewater spends a minimum of
%A0'B minutes in chlorine0contact tanks. 3ypochlorous acid 35!l is used as
disinfecting agent.
3ypochlorous acid is not stable thus it cannot be stored. +o it is generated by
dissolving the water with any of the following.

Colecular chlorine gas

!l
'
< 3
'
5
35!4 < 3
<
<
!l
0

+odium hypochlorite

!alcium hypochlorite
Slude treatment
The generation of activated sludge or floc in wastewater is a slow process and the
amount so formed from any volume of wastewater during its period of treatment is
small and inade2uate for the rapid and effective treatment of the wastewater which
re2uires large concentrations of activated sludge.
+uch concentrations are built up by collecting the sludge produced from each volume of
wastewater treated and re0using it in the treatment of subse2uent wastewater flows.
The sludge so re0used is known as returned sludge.
The purpose of return sludge is to maintain a concentration of activated sludge in
the aeration tank sufficient for the desired degree of treatment.
CONC'USION
Through this report we come to understand the working of waste water
management and treatment. Due to the acute shortage of water resources, it is
necessary to recycle and reuse waste water. /n a waste water treatment plant water
is treated through various treatment processes and is finally made fit for drinking
purpose. /n /ndia there are only few large scale waste water treatment facilities and
the municipal corporation is still not taking ample steps to effectively recycle the
waste water. /f resources are employed a lot more water can be reused and can
cure water shortage problems in many parts of the /ndian subcontinent.
fig.&ower unit
?eferencesD
1. @nvironmental &rotection ,gency #Water treatment ?eport$
2. Waste Water Treatment #@-+$
3. Wikipedia
4. +mall scale waste water treatment plants #pdf$
5. httpDEEwww.defence.gov.au