ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

Water Quality Parameters

1. Turbidity – optical clarity; reported in NTU 10. Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)
(nephelometric turbidity unit) - Amount of oxygen from strong
2. Dissolved & Suspended Solids – measure oxidizing agent to oxidize dissolved
od the number and size of particles in substances
water - Usually higher than BOD and may
include significant error depending on
TS = TDS + TSS
the composition of the water sample
3. Electrolytic Conductivity – measure of - Commonly used oxidizing agent is
resistance of water to flow of electrons potassium dichromate (K2Cr2O7)
- Lower resistance means more - Faster way of measuring the organic
dissolved ionic substances. load of a water sample
4. Color
Eutrophication – rapid growth of algae leading to
- Apparent  due to suspended particles
the suffocation of aquatic life
- True  due to dissolved materials /
metal ions Common Triggers:
5. Hardness – caused by dissolved minerals
- Excess fertilizer runoff
like calcium & magnesium in combination
- Untreated poultry/livestock wastewater
with CO3, HCO3, Cl, and SO4.
- Untreated sewage of human wastes
- Temporary  paired with bicarbonate
11. Microbial count – can be expressed as
and can be removed by precipitation
total coliform, fecal coliform, or E.coli
- Permanent  paired with
count
chloride/sulfate and can only be
- Coliform  human and animal manure
removed by ion-exchange
- Fecal Coliform  digestive track
6. pH – measure of H ion concentration
12. Algae & Phytoplankton – can be
- in water treatment, ideal pH is neutral
determined from the measurement of
of near neutral
chlorophyll content of water by
7. Alkalinity – equivalent amount of
spectrophotometric analysis
monoprotic acid used to neutralize water
sample Water Treatment
- Ability of water sample to resist large
changes in pH 1. pH Control and Pre-chlorination
8. Dissolved oxygen – plays vital role in the - pH needs to be around 7
natural ability of water to self-purify - low pH may affect coagulation-
- @30C, maximum dissolved oxygen is flocculation and may corrode pipes and
8.24 mg/L. tanks
- It is inversely proportional to - high pH may interfere with the
temperature. solubilization of certain coagulants
9. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) - pre-chlorination is done in water of
- Amount of oxygen that high organic load
microorganisms need to degrade the 2. Coagulation – coagulant is added
dissolve organic matter in water - Alum (aluminum sulfate), ferric
(expressed in mg/L) chloride/sulfate, PAC (polyaluminum
- High BOD translates to high amount of chloride)
dissolved organic material 3. Flocculation – formation of large masses
of flocs
DO i−DO t - Slow mixing of water and coagulant
BODt =
Vs 4. Sedimentation – settle large particles that
Vb could have escaped previous process
 5. Filtration – polishing step to ensure Class SC Fishery water class III – sustenance
removal of most suspended particles fishing/ Recreational water class II
- Rapid Sand Filter  adsorb some Class SD Navigable water
organic substances that were not
removed in the previous processes.
6. Disinfection – reduce microbial load to  Exemptions for effluent BOD are given to
undetectable levels those dealing with strong wastewater of
- Commonly used disinfectants are BOD>3000 ppm.
chlorine gas, ozone gas, chloramine, Characteristics of Domestic Wastewater
chlorine dioxide, and UV-C radiation (Municipal Wastewater):
Membrane technology – can efficiently treat  BOD of around 200 mg/L
water in a more compact space  Suspended Solids = 240 mg/L
Reverse Osmosis – high pressures are used to  Coliform count = 3 million CFU / 100 mL
separate from the dissolved salts  Total Nitrogen = 35 mg/L
 Total Phosphorus = 10 mg/L
- Requires pre-treatment to prevent fast  Brown to gray in appearance and has
fouling strong smell
 Main parameters for concern are
Sludge Handling – water treatment produces less
BOD/COD, nutrients, and microorganisms
sludge compared to wastewater treatment
Wastewater Treatment
- Sludge can be dewatered and disposed
in landfills 1. Screening – remove large particles that
could damage pumps and other
Philippine National Standards for Drinking Water
equipment
- PNSDW 2017 (DOH AO No. 2017- 2. Grit chamber – settle dense, inorganic
0010) particles that are not removed by
screening
3. Flotation tanks – less-dense particles are
Wastewater Treatment encouraged to float to the surface. Mainly
used for the removal of fats, oils, and
RA 9275 – Clean Water Act of 2004 grease
Discharge Permit – valid for 5 years and are 4. Equalization basins – slowing of the flow
renewable of influent wastewater and controlling its
feeding to the treatment process
- Higher discharge = higher fee - Removes the variability of flow of
wastewater from the sources and
DAO 2016-08:
supplies a constant amount to the
Class AA Public water supply class 1 – need treatment process
only disinfection 5. Settling/Sedimentation tanks – clarifiers
Class A Public water supply class II – needs - Removes most of the settleable
full water treatment organic matter and concentrates it as
Class B Recreational water class I – primary a sludge slurry
contact recreation - Reduce the organic load of the
Class C Fishery waters for propagation of wastewater
Fishes. R.W.C II 6. Suspended growth bioreactors – main
Class D Navigable water step that removes BOD; activated sludge
Class SA Protected waters – Fishery water process or return activated sludge
Class I – shellfish harvesting 7. Membrane bioreactor – enables the
Class SB Fishery water class II / Recreational combination of aeration and solid-liquid
Water class I separation
 - Faster and more efficient in removing
BOD, TSS, ammonia, phosphate, and
coliform
8. Attached growth bioreactors – bacteria
responsible for treatment are grown on
media with high surface area.
a. Trickling filter – influent wastewater is
made to trickle down a column of
porous media.
- Highly oxygenated environment that
does not require active aeration
b. Rotating biological contractor – slowly
rotating disk containing large specific
surface area favorable for housing
large amount of microorganisms
c. Packed/Fluidized bed – combination of
attached growth and suspended
growth
- Low fluid velocities for packed bed;
higher fluid velocities for fluidized bed.
9. Nutrient removal – not necessary if the
water is destined to be used for crop
irrigation
a. Denitrification – removal of nitrate
through anerobic process
- Needs the absence of oxygen
10. Disinfection – before release, wastewater
is disinfected to eliminate pathogens
- Done by contacting the clean water
with disinfectants
11. Sludge handling and treatment
a. Anaerobic digestion – sludge is kept in
anaerobic conditions to facilitate
methanogenesis through breakdown of
organic matter.
b. Dewatering – reduce the moisture
content of digested sludge before
disposal
- Can be through filter press or
centrifuge