Hybrid Water Treatment System

Shehla Batool

Department Of Env ironmental Sc ience

Quaid I Azam Univers i ty

Introduction

• Water not only supports life but also development.

• Ground water reliance as a source of potable water

• According to World Health Organization (WHO), out of all the

groundwater contaminants the most severe health effects on global

scale are caused by Arsenic and Fluoride

Fluoride Contamination

According to WHO (2014), almost 27 countries around the world have been affected by Fluoride (F-)contamination, affecting about 200 million people.

Source: Sachin et al., 2015

• Fluoride exposure causes

• Fluorosis; skeletal, dental and non-skeletal

• Degeneration of neurons, deceased aerobic metabolism and altered free radial metabolism in liver, kidney and heart

• It is also known to inhibit DNA synthesis

Arsenic Contamination

Arsenic (As) contamination reported over 70 countries, affected about 150 million people, ( 90 million in South East Asia i.e. India, Pakistan and Bangladesh)

Source: Sachin et al., 2015

• Highest priority contaminant and Group1 human

carcinogen by International Agency for Research on

Cancer

• As causes Arsenicosis, characterized by

• hypo/hyper pigmentation or keratosis

• Cardio vascular Diseases

• Diabetes Mellitus or Impaired Cognitive

Function in early childhood

• Pakistan ranks 4th in the world in Arsenic and fluoride contamination

• Most affected are the Sindh and Punjab Provinces (PCRWR,2006)

• Most affected is the rural population • QAU is undergoing a mega

transboundary project to determine As and F- contamination.

Arsenic and Fluoride Contamination in Pakistan

Source; PCRWR, 2006

Fluoride and Arsenic Pollution in Punjab, Pakistan

6

79%

11%

10%

Total Arsenic

As <10 µg/L

As 10-50 µg/L

As >50 µg/L86%

10%

4%

Total Fluoride

F <1.5 mg/L

F 1.5-3 mg/L

F >3 mg/L

Source; Field Survey 2015- 2017, Department of Environmental Sciences Quaid-i-Azam University

Affected Population of Punjab

Source; Field Survey 2015- 2017, Department of Environmental Sciences Quaid-i-Azam University

Removal Technologies

• Essentially the technologies/ methods applied for removal are same for both As and F-. These include;

• Chemical Precipitation or Coagulation

• Adsorption

• Ion Exchange

• Membrane Filtration

• Most recent trend is the use of biogenic sources for removal, inspired by the concept is waste minimization/utilization. Although, their removal efficiency is high but these materials cannot be up-scaled due degradation of biogenic media resulting in high TOC, turbidity, and production cost.

The Technology

• Arsenic, fluoride , iron removal is achieved by using indigenous, low cost materials that work under normal conditions

Decontamination through

precipitation

• A ceramic filter is used to filter the precipitates

• It is also made from local materials and lasts up to 1 year

Filtration • The waste produced will

be collected and converted to useful products; Valorization

Waste Reduction

Hybrid Water Treatment System (HWTS): The Product

Water purification scathes

Tap

Perforated filter casing

Clean Water

• Decontaminates arsenic and fluoride to their respective WHO limits

• A low cost (20$) system• Easy to maintain as no special precaution or

training is required and is easy to use, • requires minimal maintenance, only cleaning of

filter with scrub and collection of waste• Does not require an external energy input.• It minimizes waste through valorization

Determination of Effective Dose

• Batch experiments were performed using real water samples collected from study area

• A locally manufactured precipitant was used

0.00209

0.00365

0.002010.00156

0.00644

0.00478

0.00398

0.00278

00

0.001

0.002

0.003

0.004

0.005

0.006

0.007

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140

As

con

c. (

mg

/L)

Time (sec)

As Removal (1.7mg/L)

Dose = 0.35g Dose = 0.25g Dose = 0.5g

Determination of Effective Dose

0.06

0.05

0.03

0.01

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

0.06

0.07

30secs 60 sec 90 sec 120 secs

Axi

s Ti

tle

Axis Title

dose = 0.2g/L

Filter Modifications

• Ceramic Filters were used as filtration media

• These were provided by ALPA Services

• So far four modifications have been done

• Results of first filter

Parameters Original 1st Run 2nd Run 3rd Run 4th Run

pH 7.3 8.5 8.5 8.9 9.4

EC (µS/cm) 1284 1105 1118 1202 1384

TDS(mg/L) 915 788 788 852 994

SO4(mg/L) 90 90 90 90 90

Fe(mg/L) 2 Bdl bdl bdl bdl

As(mg/L) 2.5 .05 0.1 0.2 0.1

F-(mg/L) 12 12 12 12 12

System Modification

System Efficiency

Microbes

E.coli, Total Coliform, Fecal Coliform -

Turbidity

>25 NTU -

Decontamination

2.5mg/L As; 5mg/L F-; 5mg/L Fe 1mg/L As Individually

External Validation

External Validation

Target Areas

Cluster 1

Cluster 2

Cluster 3

Cluster 4

• Cluster 1 is the Study, Kudpur, Bahadru, Ludiuttar

• Cluster 2, 3, 4 are the sub segments

• Each cluster belongs to a group of villages that are interconnected and greatly influence one another

Source: QAU and USAID Joint Survey

Market Validation in the Clusters

• We approach the village through village council (panchayat)

• So far we have tested almost 18883 samples and collected data from almost 175 villages

• For product introduction water is tested and product is demonstrated in these council meetings

Market Validation

Competitor Product Price Analysis

113.21

56.60 51.89

283.02

42.45 18.87

REVERSE OSMOSIS ULTRA/MICRO FILTRATION

LOW COST TREATEMENT

SYSTEMS

HYBRID SYSTEMS BUCKET TRATMENT UNITS

HYBRID WATER TREATMENT

SYSTEM

Co

st (

USD

)

Product Type

• We have been working in collaboration with the ALPA Services (Pvt.) ltd.

• We have developed hybrid water treatment system as the most cost effective solution

Cost Structure