Water Treatment and the Processes Required
We as human beings are increasing in number day by day. The population is exploding atan enormous rate, and this is uncontrollable for now. Because of this explosion there has been a constant increase in the demand of natural resource, far higher than the supply rate. We have been exploiting and polluting resources for decades now and we aren’t even realizing the impact it has on our environment. One such important natural resource is water.
HOW IS WATER POLLUTED?
Water being an inexhaustible resource doesn’t give us the fear of getting perished but on the other and it is getting polluted severely. Water isn’t safe anymore because of the pollutants we release into it without realizing how we are completely detoriating its quality. This has always been a threat to human and animal life. The aquatic and marine culture is also affected by it. All this makes it very important to go for water treatment.
SOLUTION TO THE SEVERE PROBLEM
Such a great problem can neither be just stopped nor can we decrease the intensity of it, but amendments can be made and systems can be installed to come to a comprising situation wherein we can treat the already polluted water and make it fit for human consumption. Water treatment systems are systems that treat water which is already polluted and make it fit for drinking. This treatment makes water fit for disposal as it treats the harmful chemicals which affect the marine life and pollute the complete water bodies.
PROCESSES FOR DRINKING WATER TREATMENT
Pre-chlorination: this process includes adding of chlorine in the water which reduces algae growth. It also controls biological growth in the water which reduces the contamination and also helps in making the water fit for use.
Aeration: this process is done to remove dissolved iron in the water which is present in very little amount in the water but can be harmful for health if consumed by humans.
Coagulation: this process is one for slow sand filtration, in which the suspended sand particles are filtered out of the water purifying it and making it sand free which can be harmful for consumption.
Sedimentation: here, the solid pollutants in the water are filtered out. These maybe the huge particles that suspend water and make it contaminated. Once these particles are removed, the water is purified to a great extent and only chemical or dissolved particles are left to be treated.
Filtration: in this process, water is passed through a sand bed to remove the even smaller particles which could not be filtered out during the sedimentation process. These sand beds can be washed and re used for further use. Along with new technology and resources, special filters are designed to carry out this process, which are also washable in nature.
Disinfection: this process in for the filtration of viruses and bacteria that contaminate the water. Pathogens can be cleared out of water with this procedure and water can be made pollutant free with this process.
Desalination is also a popular process for desalinating water, i.e. removing excessive salt content from sea water to make it fit for drinking or other purposes. These processes make water pollution free and make it fit for consumption which in return results in regeneration of water after the damage done. This serves as a boon as after human consumption water is contaminated in a number of ways and it if difficult to use the same water for any purposes. Water treatment systems are very useful in the recent decades.