There are three variations of sedimentation tanks that the demo plant team can use. The purpose of these experiments were to find which sedimentation tank produced the lowest effluent turbidity when run at a number of flow rates. The preferre d tank will be used in the production of additional demo plants. The tanks are displayed below.
Sahana Balaji, Muhammed Abdul-Shakoor, Thalia Aoki, Miree Eun, Diana Kelterborn
The AguaClara water treatment process consists of coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, and filtration, with flow/chemical dose control using gravity. The Demonstration Plant (Demo Plant) is an important educational tool to explain and publicize AguaClara technologies. Currently, a new Demo Plant has been constructed, tested, and documented. This version of the Demo Plant includes a sedimentation tank and a Stacked Rapid Sand Filter (SRSF) as well as a chemical doser and flocculator. The sedimentation tank design is based on the design from the ENGRI 1131 course and includes the formation of a floc blanket. The SRSF shows the new filtration method recently developed by AguaClara. There has also been emphasis on the systematic documentation of both theoretical calculations behind the design and operation of the Demo Plant.
Susan Chen, Owen Guldner, Diana Kelterborn
Abstract
The Demonstration Plant (Demo Plant) is an important educational tool to explain and publicize AguaClara technologies. In the Spring of 2012, a new Demo Plant was constructed, tested, and documented which included the two latest AguaClara technologies, a chemical doser and a stacked rapid sand flter (SRSF), as well as the older flocculator and sedimentation tank. However there were still problems with the overall plant layout, the chemical doser, and the SRSF, all of which were dealt with this summer. We completely revised the demo plant structure and system; the SRSF now can completely backwash all four layers, the chemical doser is labeled to include coagulant concentrations, and the overall plant is streamlined for transport and assembly.
Ed Cheng and Jenny (Ruoyu) Yin
The Small Scale Plant Model Team of Spring 2015 worked to design a clear and portable model of the AguaClara water treatment plant. The current small scale plant model is cumbersome to travel with and difficult to understand for those unfamiliar with AguaClara technologies. After repairing the previous model, the team identified promoting education and awareness the primary purposes of the new model. Representing the water treatment plant in a clear and critical way will be the main objective of the Small Scale Model Team. After a semester of material testing and prototypes, the new small scale model will be completed over summer and fall 2015.
Owen Guldner and Diana Kelterborn
The Demonstration Plant (Demo Plant) is an important educational tool to explain and publicize AguaClara technologies. In the Spring of 2012, a new Demo Plant was constructed, tested, and documented which included the two latest AguaClara technologies, a chemical doser and a stacked rapid sand flter (SRSF), as well as the older flocculator and sedimentation tank. In the summer of 2012 the demo plant structure and system was completely revised; the SRSF was fixed so that it can completely backwash all four layers, the chemical doser was labeled to include coagulant concentrations, and the overall plant was streamlined for transport and assembly. This semester we finalized construction materials and methods and built four more demo plants to be used at Cornell and abroad.
Eric Stucker and Jen Weidman
The demo plant team is responsible for design, construction, and troubleshooting of the AguaClara Demo Plant. The successful operation of this plant is crucial in order to demonstrate the inner workings of AguaClara plants to students, faculty, staff, community members, business partners, and potential sponsors. This spring semester, our research team has focused on creating one complete demo plant, and fixing issues with that plant, such as an unreliable flocculator and concerns with differences in head. This work included implementing and testing new fittings for the stacked rapid sand filter, conceptualizing and implementing a more efficient way to facilitate plant assembly and startup to those unfamiliar with it, resolving issues with improper coagulant dosing and head loss differences, and properly documenting all aspects of the plant so that future team members new to AguaClara (like us) would have much less difficulty familiarizing themselves with the Demo Plant.We also measured and adjusted plant ow rates to match historical data and ensure smoother operation of the plant, and labeled tanks to further improve ease of operation of the plant. While we did not achieve our goal of fabricating new plants for future teams to use, we documented all the materials present, as well as those we need, and we provided detailed drawings for future construction.
