Advanced Engineering Technology for Uprating Treatment Plants

Author(s): E. O. LaFontaine
Source: Journal (American Water Works Association), Vol. 66, No. 1 (January 1974), pp.
59-64
Published by: Wiley
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/41266958
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 ' Mrr
rut
E. O. LaFontaine
Advanced New technology makes possible the improvement
of existing water-treatment plants so that more and
better-quality water is produced. Both the physical

Engineering setup of treatment plants and the chemical additives

used in treatment are discussed.

Technology
Experience has shown that many water plants can be
uprated to provide significantly increased output by the use
of advanced engineering technology. If the existing struc-
tures are sound and if historically accepted design parame-

for Uprating
ters were applied in designing the original installation, plant
output can be increased by as much as 100 per cent at
minimal cost.

Treatment
In many cases increased output can be realized without
physical disruption or new construction. Very often the ap-
plication of new and better chemicals together with im-
proved .operating techniques will yield as much as 50 per

Plants cent output increase with little financial outlay.

It is the purpose of this article to point out areas in the
water-treatment process to which one may look to improve
efficiency. In addition, a procedure for undertaking plant
improvement will be outlined.
The discussion will center on surface-water supplies since
they represent the type most commonly encountered.

Water-Treatment Process

The water-treatment process as shown in Fig. 1 may

include any or all of the following elements:
1. Raw-water supply - intake structure, intake pipe, low-
lift or raw-water well, raw-water screening devices, low-lift
pumps and discharge main
2. Chemical feeders and equipment - feeders, chemical
storage facilities, flow-measuring elements and automatic
controllers
3. Pretreatment elements - mechanical equipment, tanks
and chambers, physical-chemical devices
4. Filtration elements - pressure filters or gravity filters
such as conventional sand and gravel media, high-rate dual
media with anthracite and sand, proprietary media, or pro-
prietary package-type filtration units with or without pre-
treatment elements
5. Backwash equipment- backwash pump(s), piping,
valves, and controls; surface sweeps or agitators; wash-water
discharge facilities; wash-water and sludge waste-treatment fa-
cilities*
♦This element has only recently become a requirement in accordance
with pollution-control regulations of the Ontario Ministry of- the Environ-
ment.

A paper presented at the Ontario Sect. Meeting on Apr. 30,

1973, by E. 0. LaFontaine, president, LaFontaine, Cowie,
Buratto & Assocs., Windsor, Ont., Canada.

JANUARY 1974 E. O. LaFONTAINE 59

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 Fig. 1. Water-Treatment Process

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 Fig. 4. Rectangular Settling Tank

Fig. 2. Low-Lift Pump House

Fig. 3. Mixing Tank Fig. 5. Clarifier

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 A Wash-Water a
Low-lift well. If pumps are not able to operate pr
rough
because of deficient intake capacity, expanding d
Wash
water well may help overcome the problem. This alt
-Water D

tive, however, may not be as attractive as others.

"?1 I
Screening arrangements in the raw-water we, 11 m
Sa"d
operational deficiencies, especially if the screens
fairly fine mesh and must be manually cleaned. The
^Filter Media temptation to clean the screens only when plant cap
suffers. These deficiencies can be overcome by the
tion of automatic traveling screens. If the raw-water
not been designed with adequate space, this solution
B r- Wash -W ater T rough
_
always feasible.
Wash -Water v -
Low-lift pumps. Raw-water-supply deficiencies m
Drains J
overcome to some extent by improved operation
H ft Surface |
I 11/ Aqitators ^ | low-lift pumps (Fig. 2). This may involve pump mod
-- .. -'m///m^m. I 11/ Aqitators ^ | wrzxz. tions that make pumps compatible with system hyd
Sand
Control modifications to accommodate the system r
Grave' -
Underdrains
ments may also be beneficial. Variable-speed oper
^Filter Media one or more low-lift pumps will achieve a low-lift o
that nearly matches plant demand and reduces severe
Fig. 6. Filter level changes in the low-lift well.
A - conventional; B - modified uprated Low-lift discharge header. Very often a problem i
lift capacity may be overcome by increasing the capa
6. Chlorination and chemical additives the low-lift discharge main. Too often low-lift pump
7. High-lift pumping facilities is increased without adequate analysis of the hydrau
8. Storage pacity of the low-lift discharge pipe, which may
small. This deficiency is overcome by duplicating the
Increasing Plant Capacity main.
In order to increase capacity the plant first must be Duplication of a low-lift discharge main is not usu
hydraulically capable of handling a greater throughput.veryThis expensive part of the work, and the benefits de
means that all pipes and equipment from the inlet to the well worth the cost.
high-lift discharge header must have adequate physical size
Pretreatment Facilities
to handle the desired volume of water. If piping and valves
must be changed, the project becomes difficult and costly. Modern technology has made great strides in raw
In order to increase flow the speed of treatment must treatment or pretreatment of water before applicatio
likewise be increased. Increasing treatment speed implies filters. Advances in both the chemistry of water tre
that treatment efficiency of all components must be im- and the design of equipment are the major contribu
proved to maintain satisfactory water quality. Generally, improvements in this area. Some of these technolog
vances follow.
increased plant capacity is achieved through a combination
of these two concepts. Microstrainers. The development of microstrainers for
theby
Sometimes increased plant capacity can be achieved removal of algae from raw-water supplies has been a
significant advance. They are very effective in overcoming
increasing the throughput volume and accepting a reduced
filter clogging where the raw-water supply contains high
water-quality output. Although many plants produce a water
algae growth.
of considerably better quality than the minimum standard
established by the water-utility industry, acceptance ofMicrostrainers
a are fairly expensive to purchase but gen-
erally
lower quality is seldom considered a desirable method of are easily added as a treatment component to the
achieving increased plant capacity. plant. They require a tank structure, power, and operational
control
Therefore, it is not suggested that lower water quality be devices. They should be operated automatically with
variable-speed controls to match flow demand.
accepted as a means of plant expansion; rather, the objective
is to point out where to seek improved efficiency in Most the microstrainer units furnished today are provided
various plant components. with an ultraviolet light arrangement to kill slime growth.
Microstrainers must be adequately sized since they can-
Raw-Water Supply
not be overloaded without damaging them. The designer
Intake. Unfortunately, nothing can be done to remedy an usually approach the operational claims of the manu-
must
undersized intake except building a new one. If the intake
facturers with some caution in this respect.
pipe appears to be of adequate size, some improvement It should also be noted that microstrainers must operate
might be obtained by redesigning and reconstructing ahead
the of any chlorine injection to prevent damage to the
inlet structure. Extending the intake pipe to a better straining
water fabric and to prevent odors that result when algae
depth or a better location may also help, but these alterna-
are chlorinated.
tives are costly. Chemical treatment. Research has proved that the judi-
If the intake problem is purely seasonal and peak demand
cious use of chemicals and their controlled application can
occurs when raw-water quality is best, temporary shoredo more for water-quality improvement than most other
intakes or floating intake devices may be used with limited
means available. Most people are familiar with the use of
success.
alum and chlorine in the water-treatment process. Recent

62 PLANT OPERATIONS JOURNAL AWWA

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technology has indicated that a host of other chemicals may clarifiers. Increased loadings ranging between 200 and 300
be used in varying circumstances with very effective results per cent have been achieved with their use without reduction
and dramatically increased plant capacity. in water quality.
The use of floc-settlers requires reasonable care in moni-
1. Potassium permanganate is used for removal of algae
toring sludge density and buildup in the settling chambers.
and for taste and odor control. It may also be used in lieu of
Careful control of the sludge blanket can /esult in optimum
prechlorination.
settling capability.
2. Alum is used as a coagulant for most water-treatment
processes. Filtration Facilities
3. Sodium silicate, or activated silica, is a flocculent aid
Both pressure filters and gravity filters may be uprated
used in conjunction with alum to produce a better floe.
with properly designed pretreatment facilities and chemical
4. Lime is used for pH control and water softening.
application.
5. Polymers are used as flocculent aids and in filter
It is important to reiterate that uprating of any component
backwashing to improve efficiency.
of the water plant is contingent upon the capacity of the
6. Clay is sometimes used in solids-contact clarifiers to
provide a vehicle for floe growth and sedimentation.
pipes and channels to carry the increased flow. This is
7. Activated carbon is used for taste and odor control. particularly important in filter piping systems. Uprating of
the filters cannot be achieved unless the filter inlet and outlet
8. Chlorine dioxide is also used for taste and odor control.
9. Chlorine is used as a disinfectant both before and after piping can accommodate higher flows.
Most filters utilize tanks with standard filter media com-
filtration as well as for taste and odor control.
posed of layers of sand and gravel over a collector system,
10. Ozone is used for the same purposes as chlorine.
which may consist of pipes or various patented underdrain
11. Fluorides are added to many systems for the preven-
devices (see Fig. 6).
tion of tooth decay.
The commonly used design standard has been a filtration
The foregoing are some but not all of the chemicals that rate of 1.67 gal (Imp)/sq ft of filter surface/min. With
are and may be used to improve water quality. Proper good pretreatment, conventional filters may be operated at
application of these chemicals after appraisal of test results filtering rates of 4 gal (Imp)/sq ft/min.
will usually improve water quality and plant efficiency. Modifying conventional filters by the installation of differ-
Mixing. Coagulation requires proper mixing of the chemi- ent filter media will considerably improve the capacity of the
cals as intimately and as quickly as possible with the raw filters and, enable them to operate at rates approaching 8 gal
water if they are to do their job. As a result, every plant (Imp)/sq ft/min without appreciably increasing their back-
should have flash-mixing devices preceding the delivery of washing requirements.
the water to the flocculating and settling chambers (see Fig. High-rate filtration has been successfully carried out using
3). Many plants that do not have flash-mixing facilities can media graded coarse to fine from top to bottom. Using
be greatly improved and uprated by the installation of these anthracite and sand has proved to be effective. Some media
very simple and economical devices. Moreover, chemical are supplied under various patents covering their unique
usage is kept to a minimum when flash mixers are used. characteristics.
Flash mixing is a necessity prior to use of conventional New types of filter bottoms and underdrain arrangements
flocculation and settling basins. Although they are not neces- have also improved filtration rates, although their use is
sary when solids-contact clarifiers are used, flash mixers will generally more beneficial for proper backwashing.
improve the operation of those units also. Filters may be rebuilt and uprated at fairly reasonable
Settling and clarifying. Settling and clarifying of chemical- cost - generally by the plant personnel on a time schedule to
ly treated raw water is a physical-chemical process. Its suit their convenience. If no piping changes are required,
efficiency is directly related to the capability of creating a very little disruption or inconvenience is experienced.
proper settleable floe, maintaining a proper solids-to-clear- In rebuilding filters consideration should be given to the
liquid ratio in the settling chamber, and being able to remove replacement of the filter bottoms or underdrain system at the
the clear water from the mixture at the highest possible rate. same time, especially if backwashing has been any problem
Conventional settling basins (Fig. 4A) are seldom able to in the past.
achieve all of these objectives, with the jresult that water- Even if pipes, valves, and flow controllers must be re-
plant operators find that in order to increase throughput they placed, the cost of increasing filter capacity by rebuilding the
must accept a fairly high floe "carryover" to the filters. filters with new media is quite low in comparison with a
Solids-contact clarifiers (Fig. 5) have proved to be very . physical plant extension.
efficient in this regard. Part of their success is due to the
intimate mixing and recycling of sludge with the incoming Backwash System
water, the geometry of their construction, and the automatic Generally speaking, if the backwash system operates satis-
and selective recycling and removal of sludge. factorily for a conventional sand-filter arrangement, it will
Solids-contact clarifiers are a very convenient and operate equally well for the rebuilt filter. Backwash pump
economical means of improving the pretreatment of water or piping arrangement should not need replacement unless
so that the filters can be operated at high rates. these components are worn out or improperly designed.
The use of patented floc-settling devices has been found to Some form of automated controls and recording may be
be a very effective and economical way to uprate both desirable and could be included.
conventional settling tanks (Fig. 4B) and clarifiers alike. One element of the backwash system that should be re-
These devices are simple in design and construction, with viewed is the auxiliary scour facility for breaking up the
no moving parts. They take advantage of the laws of physics filter body at the commencement of the backwash sequence.
to increase the surface loading rate of settling basins or This may be accomplished by the use of surface agitators or

JANUARY 1974 E. O. LaFONTAINE 63

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an air-scour system. The air-scour system can be used only
with underdrain systems that do not require supporting
gravel layers. The introduction of air beneath the underdrain
causes the sand and anthracite to be thoroughly mixed and
scrubbed. The media are reclassified during the water back-
wash. It is claimed that the amount of backwash water is
reduced in the air-scour system.
Although it does not appreciably improve plant capacity,
the installation of improved jet wash or air-scouring equip-
ment should be considered in an uprating program.

Controls and Equipment

One important means of improving plant efficiency and
insuring a higher plant capacity is to provide proper automa-
tic control over the application of chemicals, rate of flow,
filter operation, pump operation, and emergency facilities.
Chemical feeders should feed in direct proportion to flow,
automatically recording plant throughput and permitting
either manual or automatic adjustment of the chemical ap-
plication. This is particularly necessary in the application of
certain chemicals, especially fluorides. Automatic pump con-
trols on both the high-lift or low-lift stations will improve
plant efficiency and capacity. Automatic filter and backwash
controls will likewise improve efficiency and capacity. Auto-
matic pressure controls should be used to regulate pumping
rates in variable-speed arrangements or to operate control
valves on constant-speed units.

Piping and Valves

Bigger piping may be required for better hydraulic capac-

ity or better flow rate. Piping is an expensive item and, can
add substantially to the cost of an uprating program.
If new piping is required, newer kinds of pipes should be
considered where applicable. Butterfly valves with automatic
operators are being used increasingly throughout most
water-plant improvements for low space requirements.

High-Lift Pumps

Uprating a filtration plant implies the capability of deliv-

ering more water. It follows therefore that the high-lift
pumps must be examined and modified as required.
Vertical turbine pumps have become popular because of
their space-saving characteristics as well as their low initial
Ministry of the Environment, all new and existing water-
cost. Moreover, they require no priming devices and may be
treatment plants must provide for treatment of the backwash
used in a wide range of applications. and sludge waste from water-treatment plants. This applies
Pumps must be properly selected and properly powered. apparently to any project involving work on existing plants.
Variable-speed drives are extremely useful, although quite If a sewage-treatment system is available, the matter can
expensive. If the system lacks elevated storage of standpipes,
be handled easily by a retention basin that will regulate flow
however, pumps can solve pressure surge, water-hammer discharge. If a sewage system is not available, arrangements
have to be made for the installation of a sludge pump,
problems, and other undesirable conditions quite effectively.
settling basins, and other facilities.
Standby Power
Clear-Water Storage
In redesigning water:treatment plants it is often conve-
nient to utilize a diesel generator set for standby power A in
large clear-water storage facility will appreciably in-
lieu of several existing engine-driven pumping units.crease
The the capacity of a water-treatment plant by enabling it
to operate under all kinds of load conditions. Very large
generator set may be installed conveniently in a separate
structure or wing permitting existing space to be morestorage
effi- facilities will enable a plant to continue operation
under
ciently utilized. There is no economic advantage in the use of high-demand conditions when another plant with simi-
a generator set under most circumstances, but there lar is
capacity
a but less storage would fail. Therefore plant ca-
significant improvement in operational efficiency under pacity is improved by increasing storage.
emergency conditions. Minimum storage requirements have been established by
Underwriters Labs' requirements and standard practice in the
Backwash-Water- and Sludge-Treatment Facilities water-utility industry. Maximum or optimum storage is sub-
In accordance with the latest requirements of the Ontario
ject to the laws of economics and site availability.

64 PLANT OPERATIONS JOURNAL AWWA

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