A Review of Water-Soluble Polymer Flocculant as an Alternative to the Traditional Uses of Alum

Authors

The ability of organic polymer-rich coagulants for water treatment

was studied. An improved method for the removal of the active

coagulant agent from the seeds was employed. The effects of four

variables including pH, coagulant dosage, dye concentration, and

time were analyzed. Response surface methodology (RSM) using

face-centered central composite design (FCCD) was used to

optimize the four variables. Increases in the colour removal

efficiency were higher in acidic solutions. Accurate control of

coagulant dosages gave optimum destabilization of charged

particles and re-stabilization occurred at above 800mg/L. Polymer

performances were measured through a time-dependent decrease

in particle concentrations following aggregates growth. The

verification experiment agreed with the predicted values having

less than 4% standard error. An overlay contour plot was used to

establish an optimum condition for the multiple responses studied.

The response surface method was suitable for improving the

flocculation-coagulation process while minimizing the number of

experiments. Coagulants studied should be considered as an

alternative to conventional coagulants that are widely used in water

treatment