• Energy Research

Arsenic contamination in drinking water resources is of major concern in the Ganga delta plains of West Bengal in India and Bangladesh. Here, several laboratory and field studies on arsenic removal from drinking water resources were conducted in the past and the application of strong-oxidant-induced co-precipitation of arsenic on iron hydroxides is still considered as the most promising mechanism. This paper suggests an autonomous, solar driven arsenic removal setting and presents the findings of a long term field test conducted in West Bengal. The system applies an inline-electrolytic cell for in situ chlorine production using the natural chloride content of the water and by that substituting the external dosing of strong oxidants. Co-precipitation of As(V) occurs on freshly formed iron hydroxide, which is removed by Manganese Greensand Plus® filtration. The test was conducted for ten months under changing source water conditions considering arsenic (187 ± 45 µg/L), iron (5.5 ± 0.8 mg/L), manganese (1.5 ± 0.4 mg/L), phosphate (2.4 ± 1.3 mg/L) and ammonium (1.4 ± 0.5 mg/L) concentrations. Depending on the system setting removal rates of 94% for arsenic (10 ± 4 µg/L), >99% for iron (0.03 ± 0.03 mg/L), 96% for manganese (0.06 ± 0.05 mg/L), 72% for phosphate (0.7 ± 0.3 mg/L) and 84% for ammonium (0.18 ± 0.12 mg/L) were achieved—without the addition of any chemicals/adsorbents. Loading densities of arsenic on iron hydroxides averaged to 31 µgAs/mgFe. As the test was performed under field conditions and the here proposed removal mechanisms work fully autonomously, it poses a technically feasible treatment alternative, especially for rural areas.

Natural water treatment techniques combined with engineered solutions were investigated at demonstration sites in Europe within the AquaNES project. Ultrafiltration is well-established in water treatment, but is not feasible for many water utilities due to its high operational costs compared to conventional treatment. These differences in cost are caused by membrane fouling and the associated cleaning required. This study aims to assess the economic and energetic operation factors based on studies of an out/in ultrafiltration treatment plant for river water and bank filtrate. The fouling potential of both raw water sources was investigated as well as the quality of the resulting water. In addition, the results show the potential utility of a combined approach utilizing bank filtration followed by ultrafiltration in drinking water treatment. In a separate consideration of the treatment process, the water quality does not fulfill the requirements of the German drinking water ordinance. A new method for the removal of dissolved manganese from the bank filtrate is presented by inline electrolysis. While this improves water quality, this also has a significant influence on fouling potential and, thus, on operating costs of ultrafiltration. These aspects lead to a fundamental decision for operators to choose between more costly ultrafiltration with enhanced microbiological safety compared to cost-effective but less stringent drinking water treatment via open filtration.