Q.1 A flow of 20 l/s of mixed grit suspension of specific gravity 2.

6 is to be
settled out in a grit chamber of surface area 5 m .calculate the diameter
of particles , 100% of which must be settled out.
Ans 1: Data given : Q = flow rate = 20 l/s = 20 X 10-3 m/s
Specific Gravity of fluid (qf) = 2.6
Surface area = 5 m

Assumed Data : Sp. Gravity of water = 1

Kinematic viscosity of Water () = 1x 10-6 m/s
Gravitational constant = 9.8

Considering the equation of flow rate Q = V X A

Velocity of the particle over the grit chamber (V ) = Q /A

= 20 X10-3 /5
= 4 X 10 -3 m/sec

For , all the particles to be settled in the grit chamber the settling velocity Vs
should be greater than or equal to the ratio Q/A which is velocity of the
particle itself. Thus , considering Vs = V and applying stokeslaw for discrete
settling of the particles ,

Vs = g/18 ( qf- q) d

Therefore , Diameter of the particle which will be settled out 100% will be

d= Vs X 18 / g X (qf- q)

Putting all the values in the equation

d = 6.77 X 10-5 m = 0.0677 mm = 0.68 mm

Thus the diameter of particles which will be settling out 100% in the grit
chamber will be 0.068 mm .
Q.2 A grit chamber serving a population of 50,000 people is 20 m long
and 1.2 m wide. Typical Dry Weather Flow (DWF) in the incoming sewer
is 556 m3/hr . what is the minimum size of sand particles that will be
removed by the chamber? What percentage and size of sand particles
will be removed under a wet weather flow of 5DWF assuming that two
grit chambers of similar size were available?

Ans : Data given : Incoming sewer flow (Q) = 556 m3/hr = 556 /3600 m3/sec
Population (P) = 50,000
Grit chamber size = 20 m x 1.2 m

Assumed Data : Specific Gravity of sewage = 2.6

Viscosity of fluid = 1 X 10-6 m2/sec

Calculating the velocity of the particle over grit chamber surface from flow rate
equation ,

Q= VXA

Particle velocity V = Q /A = 0.1544 / 20 X 1.2 = 0.0006435 m/sec

However , for the complete removal of the particle through settling in the grit
chamber , the particle velocity must be greater than or equal to settling
velocity of the particle. Thus V= Vs and applying stokelaw for discrete particle
settlement ,

Vs = g/18 ( qf- q) d

Therefore , Diameter of the particle which will be settled out completely will
be

d= Vs X 18 / g X (qf- q)

d = 8.590 X 10-5 meter -------------------------- Ans (1)

= 0.0859 mm

Thus the minimum size of the particle that will be removed by the grit chamber
will be 0.0859 mm .
For , a wet weather flow of 5DWF the incoming flow to the sewer will be

Q = 5 X DWF = 5 X 556 = 2780 m3/hour = 0.7222 m3/sec

As two grit chambers of the same size are provided for the settlement of
particles , thus the total available Surface area of the grit chamber will be

A = 2 X 20 X 1.2 = 48 m2 .

Therefore , the particle velocity

V = Q/ A = 0.722 / 48 = 0.01608 m/sec = 57.888 m/hr .

As , the data of diameter and over flow rate for various percentage removal
rate is given in the table below , We can plot a graph of Overflow rate versus
diameter that will in turn give us iso efficiency curves for various removal
rates and diameter.

Diameter (mm) Removal at overflow rates (m/hr)

100% 90 % 80%
0.16 12 16 20
0.20 17 28 36
0.25 27 45 58

From the graph getting the coordinates for 57.888 m/hr over flow rate
velocity ,
Particle of 0.25 mm diameter will be removed at 80 % efficiency .

Q.3 A sewage flow of 25l/s composed of discrete particles of varying

size but having a SG of 2.5 is allowed to settle in a grit chamber which is
5 m long and 2 m wide. If the viscosity of the liquid effluent is 1 X 10 -6
m2/s , what the will be the diameter of the particles that which
completely settle out?

Ans : Data Given : Sewage flow (Q) = 25 l/s = 25 x 10-3 m3/sec

Grit chamber size = 5 X 2 m2
Specific Gravity of Sewage = 2.5
Viscosity of fluid = 1X 10-6 m2/s

Considering the equation of flow rate Q = V X A

Velocity of the particle over the grit chamber (V ) = Q /A

= 25 X10-3 /10
= 25 X 10 -4 m/sec
 For , all the particles to be settled in the grit chamber the settling velocity Vs
should be greater than or equal to the ratio Q/A which is velocity of the
particle itself. Thus , considering Vs = V and applying stokeslaw for discrete
settling of the particles ,

Vs = g/18 ( qf- q) d

Therefore , Diameter of the particle which will be settled out completely will
be

d= Vs X 18 / g X (qf- q)

Putting all the values in the equation ,

d= 5.53 X 10-4 m/sec

= 0.553 mm .

Thus the diameter of particle which will settled out completely will be 0.553
mm .

Q .4 Calculate the theoretical surface of a horizontal flow sedimentation

tank which will remove particles with a settling velocity of 1.8 mm/s from
a flow rate of 350 l/sec under ideal conditions. In the final design for
such tank what sort of safety margin might be used to derive the final
surface area.

Ans : Data given : Settling Velocity (Vs) = 1.8 mm/s = 1.8 X 10-3 m/s
Flow rate of sewage (Q) = 350 l/sec = 350 x 10-3 m3/sec

Considering the flow rate equation Q = Vs X A

The surface area of the settling tank A = Q/Vs

= 350 X10-3 / 1.8 X10-3

= 194.4 m2 .

The normal safety margin for tanks of this type would normally be
multiplication by a factor of between 1.5 and 2, so the final design of
this tank would be for a surface area between 280 and 370 m2
COURSE WORK : TYPE II FLOCCULANT EXERCISE

MODULE CODE : GES 4006

MODULE TITLE : WATER AND WASTE
MODULE LEADER : DR. HEMDA GARELICK
STUDENT NAME : AMIT KUMAR CHRISTIAN
STUDENT ID : M 00082846
SUBMISSION DEADLINE : 01/11/2006
SUBMISSION DATE : 01/11/2006
PRIMARY SEDIMENTATION :

Wastewater contain a significant amount of suspended matter in the form of

sand , silt , organic matter and inorganic matter in it. As these suspended
matters may cause clogging of pumping and piping system of wastewater
treatment plants and sewage system , their efficient removal from the
wastewater us of primary importance for waste water engineers.

Moreover the 40-50% of the suspended particles are in the form of organic
matter which are easily settle able . These organic matter impose a great
oxygen stress on receiving water bodies if not treated thoroughly . Thus to
reduce the burden of the secondary treatment unit processes in the
wastewater treatment plant it is of prime importance that the sedimentation
processes for the removal of settle able organic matter are designed
effectively.

As these particles are heavier than water they can be removed from the
effluent allowing gravitational settling of the particles. This process of removal
of suspended particles through gravitational settling is termed as
sedimentation or settling process. It is widely used in primary treatment
process to remove settle able solids and frequently used in secondary
treatment process to remove the material transformed to settle able solids
during biological processes.

As the design of sedimentation basin greatly depends upon the particle

characteristics , the understanding of particle behaviour in wastewater is
fundamental to the wastewater treatment engineers. Depending on the
behaviour of the particles during settling , four types of sedimentation
processes can be classified as follows :

1) Type I or Discrete particle settling

2) Type II or Flocculant settling
3) Type III or Hindered (Zonal ) Settling
4) Type IV or Compression settling

Type- I or Discrete Particle settling :

In this type of settling , each particle settle out as individual entity and thus
each particle retain its characteristics during the settling process. Thus the
settling of the particle is truly dependent on the particle characteristics and
fluid properties . The behaviour of the discrete particle settling can be
described with the help of Newtons Law and Stokes Law .
Stokes Law :

In this theory describing the behaviour of particles in fluid following

assumptions are made : 1) the particle settling is discrete , 2) the flow
conditions are laminar , 3) the terminal velocity of particle remains constant .

To derive the equation for particle behaviour , Stokes considered various

forces acting upon the fluid particle . They can be described as follows :

Fb
Fd Fd

Fg

Fd = drag force acting upward =

3Dp Vr ------------------------- (1)

Where Dp is the diameter of

particle , Vr is the terminal
velocity and is the kinematic
viscosity of the particle.

Fb = Buoyant Force acting upward = qf X /6 X Dp3 x g ------------ (2)

Where qf is the density of fluid .

Fg = Gravitational force acting down ward due to the weight of the particle

= qp X /6 X Dp3 --------------------------- (3)

The net downward force acting on the particle can be calculating as ,

Fdown = Fg Fb Fd ------------------ (4)

According to the second law of Newton , the down ward gravitational force
acting upon the fluid particle can be described as ,

Fdown = mp X acceleration

= mp X dVr/dt -------------- (5)

However as for the settling of the particle assuming that the particle has
reached its terminal velocity and thus the acceleration is zero , therefore

dVr/dt = 0

therefore Fdown = 0 ----------------- (6)

From equation (4) and (6) , We can derive the equation of particle terminal
velocity as ,

Vs = Dp2 X g /18 (qp q f) ------------ (7)

This equation describe the terminal or settling velocity of the particle. Particles
with velocity greater than or equal to Vs will be settled out in the
sedimentation basin.

The flow rate of the effluent in the sedimentation tank can be described as

Q = V X A -------------- (8) where A is the surface area of the sedimentation

tank.

Therefore ,

V = Q/A -------------- (9)

For, 100 % settlement of the particle , the term (Q/A) which is called overflow
rate must be equal to or greater than the settling velocity described by the
Stokes Law . Thus for 100% settlement ,

Q/A Vs -------------- (10)

Using equations (7) and (10 ) , for known characteristics of particles and
effluent properties , we can design a sedimentation tank which will be
removing the suspended particles of particular characteristics .

It is apparent from equations (7) and (10) that settling velocity is independent
of the depth of the sedimentation basin and it depends upon the diameter of
the particle . This is the predominant characteristics of Type I or Discrete
settling . Thus even a shallow tank can effectively remove out the suspended
particles from the effluent .
However the surface area of tank and flow rate of the effluent is selected in
such a way that laminar flow conditions are prevailing over the entire
sedimentation basin and the particles are evenly distributed across the entire
surface. As the effluent flows through the sedimentation tank inlet and outlet
zones of turbulence are created in which no settling can be occurred. Thus to
minimize the impact of these inlet and outlet zones the size of the tank is kept
10-20% larger than the theoretical design values.

The limitations encountered in the application of Stokes law are that:

1) the particle characteristics are difficult to determine. The particles are

of irregular shapes and thus the exact determination of settling velocity
according to Stokes Law which considers the particle as spherical
becomes difficult.
2) Secondly the discrete behaviour of particle a preliminary assumption in
stokes law also is also a limiting factor as the depth of the tank
increases the particle tend to agglomerate with each other and
develops flocculant type of settling .

Besides these limitations , Stokes law provides a useful understanding of the

particle behaviour in settling process and with careful understanding of the
particle characteristics , fluid properties and settling process , it is feasible to
design efficient sedimentation tanks for the removal of suspended particles
from the effluent.

References :

1) Droste R. L. ( 1997) , Theory and Practice of Water and Wastewater

Treatment , John wiley & sons .
2) James R Mihelcic ( 1998) , Fundamentals of Environmental
Engineering , John Wiley & sons
3) Metcalf and Eddy Inc. -4th ed/revised by George Tchobanoglous ,
Franklin L Burton , H. David Stensel , Wastewater Engineering :
Treatment , disposal , and resue.
4) N F Gray (1989) , Biology of Wastewater Treatment , Oxford Science
Publications
5) N J Horan ( 1990) ,Biological Wastewater treatment systems :
Theory and Operations , John Wiley & Sons .