Water is certainly one of the most essential resources in the entire world, and societies primitive and advanced alike have great need of water. In the developed world, advanced industrial water treatment systems are working hard to reclaim dirty water and clean it up for human use, and even mud and sludge can have their water extracted. Other water drawn from lakes or streams can have bacteria and viruses, and other organic compounds, removed in a treatment plant. A moving bed biofilm reactor system, for example, makes use of many small floating items inside that attract biofilm as a water treatment method. In fact, a moving bed biofilm reactor may perform more work than a traditional sludge tank in the same space, and it’s not uncommon for older tanks to be remade into a moving bed biofilm reactor to boost productivity. This can remove the need to build more tanks, and this conserves space. Thus, a moving bed biofilm reactor can be a real asset for any water treatment plant, and there are even more water-filtering methods beyond that.
Water Filtration and Extraction
Water treatment products may include wheel-shaped items found inside a plant’s water tanks, and these water treatment products can be highly effective. Ever since the 1980s, moving bed biofilm reactors have done more work in the same space as older tank systems, and they can quickly remove all the organic compounds. This is done when biofilm is allowed to build up on the little wheel-like objects, and the clean water is flushed out of the system while the wheel-items are kept in the tank due to a sieve. Older water treatment plants can be upgraded into this model, and perform more work in the same space to boost efficiency.
What about water found in sludge or other materials? There is a lot of water to be found in such materials, and it shouldn’t be ignored. Instead, a belt press system can be used. Such a belt press will be fed with a quantity of sludge or other materials, and sponges, filters, and sheer pressure will be used to squeeze the water right out of the sludge. This water can then be reclaimed and sent to other water treatment hardware, while the leftover material forms a hard, dry cake. Sludge dewatering can greatly aid water reclamation from the natural environment, since not all water is simply water. Aquifers and water tables provide a lot of water, but squeezing useful water from sludge can do a lot of good, too. Further in the system, water may be treated with filters to remove larger particles, and chemicals can kill off bacteria, viruses, and microscopic parasites in the water before it enters public utilities.
Other Water Work
Sometimes, water may be treated for aesthetic reasons. A chemical dosing system, for example, is a piece of hardware dedicated to reducing the amount of hydrogen sulfide found in sewer water. This system will add various chemicals to the water to disrupt the formation of so-called “sewer gas,” and this can be highly desirable by anyone who is nearby. As much as 90% of sewer gas formation may be prevented when a chemical dosing system is in operation, and without one, the smell of sewer gas would be very strong. There are many city or state regulations in place to manage how much sewer gas is allowed to exist after chemical dosing has done its work.
Homeowners may expect clean and useful water in their utilities, but sometimes, hard water may be encountered. “Hard” water is when dissolved magnesium or calcium is found in water, and this can be inconvenient. Hard water may not be dangerous in most cases, but it can irritate the hair and scalp of someone who bathes in it, and it can dry up clothes washed in it and leave white spots of dried calcium on dishes washed in it. The solution is to have a water softener installed in the plumbing. This item will use metal beads that attract calcium and magnesium atoms to it, and saturated beads will scrub themselves clean in the salt sediments in a side tank. Then the beads are ready to continue removing the calcium and magnesium in water, reducing its undesirable hardness.