ADI/2018

Water Softening methods

1. Lime soda
a) Batch process
b) continuous process
- Cold lime-soda
- Hot lime-soda
2. Zeolite (permutit) process

3. Ion-exchange and Mixed bed ion-exchange process

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 Lime – Soda Process
a. Reaction of permanent calcium:
Ca2+ + Na2CO3 CaCO3 + 2Na+

b. Reactions of permanent magnesium:

Mg2+ + Ca(OH)2 Ca2+ + Mg(OH)2

Ca2+ + Na2CO3 CaCO3 + 2Na+

c. Reaction of HCO3- (ex-Na2CO3):

2 HCO3- + Ca(OH)2 CaCO3 + H2O + CO32-

d. Reaction of Ca(HCO3)2 :

Ca(HCO3)2 + Ca(OH)2 2 CaCO3 + 2 H2O

e. Reaction of Mg(HCO3)2 :

Mg(HCO3)2 + 2 Ca(OH)2 2 CaCO3 + 2 H2O + Mg(OH)2

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 Lime – Soda Process
f. Reaction of CO2:
CO2 + Ca(OH)2 CaCO3 + H2O
g. Reaction of H+:

2 H+ + Ca(OH)2 Ca2+ + 2 H2O

Ca2+ + Na2CO3 CaCO3 + 2 Na+

h. Reactions of coagulants:
i) Reaction of FeSO4:
Fe2+ + Ca(OH)2 Fe(OH)2 + Ca2+
Fe(OH)2 + H2O + O2 2 Fe(OH)3
Ca2+ + Na2CO3 CaCO3 + 2 Na
ii) Reactions of Aluminium sulphate (Al2(SO4)3 :

2 Al3+ + 3 Ca(OH)2 2 Al(OH)3 + 3 Ca2+

3 Ca2+ + 3 Na2CO3 3 CaCO3 + 6 Na+

iii) Reactions of sodium aluminate (NaAlO2):

NaAlO2 + H2O Al(OH)3 + NaOH

A. Lime [Ca(OH)2]requirement :
74 {Temp. Ca2+ + 2 temp. Mg2+ + Perm(Mg2+ + Al3+ + Fe2+) + CO2 + H+ + HCO3-
100 {
- NaAlO2

B. Soda[Na2CO3] requirement :
106 { Perm. (Ca2+ + Mg2+ Fe2+ + Al3+) + H+ - HCO -
3
{
100

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Lime –Soda process equipment

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Lime –Soda process equipment
Hot lime-soda process consists of
three parts:
a) Reaction tank to mix all ingredients
b) Conical sedimentation vessel where
the sludge settles down
c) Sand filter where sludge is
completely removed
Advantages of hot lime-soda process:
oThe precipitation reactions are
almost complete
o Reactions takes place faster
o Sludge settles down rapidly; No
coagulant is needed
o Dissolved gases (which may cause
corrosion) are removed
o Viscosity of soft water is lower,
hence filtered easily
o Residual hardness is low compared
to cold lime-soda process
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 Advantages & disadvantages of lime-soda process:

Advantages of Lime – soda process:

o Economical
o Process improves the corrosion resistance of water
o Mineral content of water is reduced
o pH of water raises thus reducing content of pathogenic bacteria
o No skilled labour is required

Disadvantages of Lime – soda process:

o Huge amount of sludge is formed and its disposal is difficult
o Due to residual hardness, water is not suitable for high pressure
boilers

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 Permutit or Zeolite Process
o Zeolite is hydrated sodium aluminium silicate having a general formula,
Na2OAl2O3.xSiO2.yH2O.
o It exchanges Na+ ions for Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions.
o Common Zeolite is Na2OAl2O3.3SiO2.2H2O known as natrolith.
o Other gluconites, green sand (iron potassium phyllosilicate with
characteristic green colour, a mineral containing Glauconite)etc. are used
for water softening.
o Artificial zeolite used for water softening is Permutit.
o These are porous, glassy particles having higher softening capacity
compared to green sand.
o They are prepared by heating china clay (hydrated aluminium silicate),
feldspar (KAlSi3O8-NaAlSi3O8 – CaAl2Si2O8) are a group of rock-forming
tectosilicate minerals which make up as much as 60% of the earth’s crust)
and soda ash (Na2CO3)
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 Zeolite process
o Method of softening:

Na2Ze + Ca(HCO3)2 2 NaHCO3 + CaZe

Na2Ze + Mg(HCO3)2 2 NaHCO3 + MgZe
Na2Ze + CaSO4 2 Na2SO4 + CaZe
Na2Ze + CaCl2 2 NaCl + CaZe

o Regeneration of Zeolite:

CaZe (or) MgZe + 2 NaCl Na2Ze + CaCl2 or MgCl2

Brine solution

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Zeolite process equipment diagram
 Zeolite Process

Advantages:
o Residual hardness of water is about 10 ppm only
o Equipment is small and easy to handle
o Time required for softening of water is small
o No sludge formation and the process is clean
o Zeolite can be regenerated easily using brine solution
o Any type of hardness can be removed without any modifications to
the process
Disadvantages:
o Coloured water or water containing suspended impurities cannot be
used without filtration
o Water containing acidic pH cannot be used for softening since acid will
destroy zeolite.

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 Ion-Exchange Process

o Ion-exchange resins are cross linked long chain polymers with

microporous structure.
o Cation exchange resins will exchange cations with H+.
o Anion exchange resins will exchange anions with OH-.
o Functional groups present are responsible for ion-exchange
properties.
o Acidic functional groups (-COOH, -SO3H etc.) exchange H+ for
cations &
o Basic functional groups (-NH2, =NH etc.) exchange OH- for anions.

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 Ion-Exchange Process

A. Cation-exchange Resins(RH+):

- Styrene divinyl benzene copolymers

- When sulphonated, capable of exchange H+

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 Ion Exchange Process
B. Anion-exchange resins (R’OH):
- Styrene divinyl benzene copolymers or amine formaldehyde copolymers with NH2,
QN+, QP+, QS+, groups.
- On alkali treatment, capable of exchange of OH-

Anion Exchange resin 15

 Ion Exchange Process

The Process of Ion-exchange is:

2 RH+ + Ca2+/Mg2+ R2Ca2+/R2Mg2+ + 2 H+ (Cation exchange)

R’OH- + Cl- R’+ Cl- + OH- (anion exchange)

2 R’OH- + SO42- R’2 SO42- + 2 OH- (anion exchange)

2 R’OH- + CO32- R’2 CO32- + 2 OH- (anion exchange)

Finally,
H+ + OH- H2O
Regeneration of exhausted resins:
Saturated resins are regenerated by treating with strong mineral acid or alkali respectively
R2Ca2+/R2Mg2+ + 2H+ 2 RH+ + Ca2+/Mg2+ (Strong acid)
(washings)
R’2 SO42- + 2 OH- 2 R’OH- + SO42- (Strong base)
(washings) 16
 Ion-exchange process

Note: Hard water should be first passed through the cation exchanger and then
Anion exchanger to avoid hydroxides of Ca2+ and Mg2+ getting formed
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18
 Mixed bed ion-exchanger
o Contains intimate mixture of cation and anion exchangers
o Water is in contact for a no. of times with the two exchangers alternatively
Anion exchanger
(low density)

NaOH

Mixed
Mixed ionizer Exhausted
ionizer
bed mixed
bed ionizer bed
H2SO4
Cation exchanger
(higher density)

Backwash
water Comp.
air
Raw water Washings to
Deminaralised
inlet sink19
water
Advantages & Disadvantages of ion-exchange process
o Advantages:
- Can be used for highly acid and highly alkaline water
- Residual hardness of water is as low as 2 ppm.
- Very good for treating water for high pressure boilers

o Disadvantages:
- Expensive equipment and chemicals
- Turbidity of water should be < 10 ppm. Otherwise output will
reduce; turbidity needs to be coagulated before treatment.
- Needs skilled labour

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Specifications of different materials in drinking water (ICMR and WHO)
S.No. Parameter/Material WHO Standards/ppm ICMR/BIS
Standards/ppm
1 Colour Clear Clear
2 Odour Pleasant Pleasant
3 Turbidity 2.5 2.5
4 pH 6.0 – 8.5 6.0 – 8.5
5 TDS 300 500
6 Total Hardness as CaCO3 200 300

7 Calcium 75 75
8 Chlorides 200 200
9 Sulphates 200 200
10 Fluoride 0.5 1.0
11 Mercury 0.006 0.001
12 Cadmium 0.003 0.01
13 Arsenic 0.01 0.02
14 Chromium as hexavalent 0.01 0.1

15 Lead 0.01 0.01

16 E.Coli No colony Should be present No colony Should be
in 100 mL water present in 100 mL
water
 Water treatment for municipal supply
Removes dirt and other
particles suspended in
water. Alum and other
chemicals are added for
coagulation through floc
Lakes/Reservoirs/
Rivers Storage tanks Coagulation

Multilayer filtration using Heavy particles (floc) settle to

sand, gravel and charcoal the bottom and clear water goes
for filtration
Flocculation &
Filtration Sedimentation Clarification

Calculated amount of
chlorine is added
Storage in
Disinfection closed Supply
containers through
pipelines
Domestic water purification system
Candles
 Activated Carbon Filtration
• Activated carbon filters are generally used in the process of
removing organic compounds and/or extracting free chlorine from
water.
• Coconut shells and coal (anthracite or bituminous) are both
organic sources of activated carbon.

(SiO2)
Working Mechanism in the fabrication of Activated Carbon
• Carbon forms when an organic source is burned in an environment without
oxygen. This process leaves only about 30% of the organic mass intact, driving
off heavy organic molecules.

• Prior to being used for water treatment, the organic mass must then be
"activated by either Steam Activation (800°C-1000°C) or Chemical Activation (a
powerful dehydrating agent like phosphoric acid (P2O5) or zinc chloride
(ZnCl2)."

• The process of activation opens up the carbon’s massive number of pores and
further drives off unwanted molecules. The open pores are what allow the
carbon to capture contaminants, through adsorption.

• The rate of adsorption for a surface area of a just one pound (0.45
kg) of Activated Carbon is equal to 60-150 acres!
 Candle Filtration
The Candle Filters are, like all pressure filters, operating on a batch cycle and may
be seen in process lines handling titanium dioxide, flue gas, brine clarification, red
mud, china clay, fine chemicals and many other applications that require efficient
low moisture cake filtration or high degree of polishing.

The Candle Filter consists of three

major components:
• The vessel
• The filtering elements
• The cake discharge mechanism

• Candle Filters are very well suited for

handling flammable, toxic and
corrosive materials.
 Candle Filtration

• Advantages
• Excellent cake discharge.
• Adapts readily to slurry thickening.
• Minimum floor space.
• Mechanically simple since there are no complex sealing
glands or bearings.
• Disadvantages
• High headroom is required for dismantling the filtering
elements.
• The emptying of the vessel in between cake filtration, washing
and drying requires close monitoring of the pressure inside
the vessel to ensure that the cake holds on to the candles.
 Disinfection Methods
Disinfection methods used for disinfecting water for
drinking purpose are

- Ultrafiltration
- UV treatment
- Ozonolysis
- Reverse Osmosis
 Water purification by Filtration process

The green arrow indicates that the particle is small enough to pass through
the filter, whereas the deflected orange arrow indicates that the filter blocks
the particle from passing through the filter.
 Different filtration processes
A. Ultrafiltration:
o An ultrafiltration filter has a pore size around 0.01 micron.
o A microfiltration filter has a pore size around 0.1 micron, so when water undergoes microfiltration,
many microorganisms are removed, but viruses remain in the water. Ultrafiltration would remove
these larger particles, and may remove some viruses.
o Neither microfiltration nor ultrafiltration can remove dissolved substances unless they are first
adsorbed (with activated carbon) or coagulated (with alum or iron salts).

B. Nanofiltration
o A nanofiltration filter has a pore size around 0.001 micron.
o Nanofiltration removes most organic molecules, nearly all viruses, most of the natural organic
matter and a range of salts.
o Nanofiltration removes divalent ions, which make water hard, so nanofiltration is often used to
soften hard water.

C. Reverse osmosis
o Reverse osmosis filters have a pore size around 0.0001 micron.
o After water passes through a reverse osmosis filter, it is essentially pure water. In addition to
removing all organic molecules and viruses, reverse osmosis also removes most minerals that are
present in the water.
o Reverse osmosis removes monovalent ions, which means that it desalinates the water.
Reverse Osmosis
oWhen two solutions of unequal concentrations are
separated by a Semipermeable membrane, solvent will
flow from lower conc. to higher conc. due to osmotic
pressure

oThis phenomenon can be reversed by making the

solvent to flow in the opposite direction by applying
hydrostatic pressure on the concentrated side (Reverse
Osmosis)

oIn reverse osmosis, pressure of 15-40 kg/cm2 is

applied on the contaminated water compartment.

oThe water gets forced through the semipermeable

membrane leaving behind the dissolved solids.

oThus water is separated from the contaminants rather

than removing contaminants from water.

oBoth ionic and non-ionic impurities as well as colloidal

impurities are left behind.

oThis process is also called as “Super-filtration” or

“Hyper-filtration”
 Advantages of Reverse Osmosis

o Advantage is in removing ionic, non-ionic, colloidal and high molecular

wt. organic matter.

o It removes colloidal silica (which is not removed during

demineralisation)

o Cost is only the replacement cost of membranes (life is 2 years)

o Membrane replacement is fast and hence uninterrupted water supply

can be ensured

o Because of the above reasons this process is being adopted for

converting sea water into potable water and for high pressure boilers.

o It can be used as desalination process for removing salt from sea

water.

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 Desalination of brackish water

o Water containing dissolved salts with a peculiar salty (brackish) taste is brackish water
o The process of removing common salt from water is desalination

o Electrodialysis consists of a large container with two membrane separators, one

permeable to positive ions and the other permeable to negative ions.

o In the outer compartments anode and cathode are arranged to pass DC Voltage.

o When DC voltage/current is passed through the cell, Na+ will move towards cathode
and Cl- will move towards anode through the membrane.

o Hence, the concentration of salt decreases in the middle compartment and increases
in the side compartments.

o Water from the middle compartment is collected and this water is desalinated water.

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 Electrodialysis diagram

For efficient separation, ion-selective membranes are used which selectively allow
cations or anions to pass through them.
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Electrodialysis cell

o Electrodialysis cell consists of

Large number of pairs of
rigid Plastic membranes.

o Saline water at a pressure of

5-6 kg/cm2 is passed
through the membrane pairs.

o DC current is applied
perpendicular to the direction
of water flow.

Advantages are:

1. Unit is compact and

installation is economical

2. Best suited if electricity is

available.
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