Sedimentation

The priniciples of the separation process through sedimentation is used to design

commercial thickeners for water suspensions. These thickeners works as a continuous operation
and a general conception of this operation can be produced from a simple batch sedimentation.

The objective of this paper is to be able to understand the settling mechanisms and factors
that affects the sedimentation characteristics and parameters of a batch sedimentation operation.

A simple batch sedimentation can be illustrated by suspending a finely divided solid in

water in a graduated cylinder and allowing the substances in the cylinder to settle undisturbed.

At start, the concentration of solids is uniform throughout the cylinder. And as the proces
begins, the suspended solids fall having their maximum velocity which creates a demarcation line
between the clear liquid(zone A) and the slurry(zone B). As the process continues, the particles
near the bottom of the cylinder begin to pile up, building up the concentrated solids or sludge (zone
C). So long as both zones B and D are relatively apart, the suspended particles in zone B will
continue to fall on a constant sedimentation rate. The compression(critical settling point) appears
which expells liquid upward zone D that results to a decrease in the thickness of the zone D (critical
height).

The rate of settling can be evaluated in terms of the height of the sludge in compression
zone.

−𝑑𝑍
= k(Z − Z∞)
𝑑𝑇

where, Z is the height of the sludge, Z∞ is the final height of the sludge, K is the constant
for a given suspension Zc is the critical height and T is the time when the sludge height is at critical
point.

The concentration of the sludge when the interface height is Z can be determined using
Kynch method which is done through plotting Z versus time and drawing a tangent line on the
curve it produces.