In: Civil Engineering
What is the difference between coagulation and precipitation?
Coagulation is also named as flocculation ,this process is done before sedimentation.
Coagulation is used to purify the water and to reduce the
turbidity in the water .
Turbidity is a measure of the amou5 of suspended particles in a
smaple which cause cloudness. The particles which form cloudness in
water are colloidal particles .
Coagulation is a chemical process of contact and adhesion of the colloidal particles which flock together to form big clusters which can easily settle down at the bottom of their own.
Coagulation process is done by chemical named as
coagulant.
Coagulant is a chemical that is added to water that causes
colloidal particles to come together to form big particles that can
settle down due to gravity
Example Aluminium sulphate (Alum)
Coagulant is positive is nature and colloidal particles are negative in nature ,when coagulant is added in water neutralization takes place and after adding polymer for binding coagulation process takes place.
Precipitation is process for the removal of mettalic suspended
solids ,fats ,oils and other organic substances from waste water
that are either dissolved or suspended in solution.
Coagulation is used
within the solid-liquid separation stage of the downstream
processing, with coagulation being the
faster initial process. The stability of the colloidal suspensions
is broken by coagulation, forming
micro-flogs, before flocculation helps increase the size of the
grouped particles to aid
sedimentation.
Precipitation is more generally used within purification and
concentration, later in the process. It
can also be within the solid-liquid separation however if the
products are dissolved in solution.