Assessing the Efficacy of Treated Water when Utilized in Eco-Cities, as Well as the Effectiveness of Different Natural Materials in Recovering and Eliminating Phosphates from Wastewater

Abstract

One of the main factors contributing to the decline in water quality is eutrophication brought on by excessive phosphorus (P) loading. This study looked at the removal and recovery of P using 12 different materials, including four different types of calcite, wollastonite, dolomite, hydroxyapatite, eggshells, coral sands, biochar, and activated carbon. A series of batch tests using synthetic wastewater solutions containing 10-100 mg PO4-P/L were used to achieve this. The lab houses large-scale, calcite-based column filter experiments that were established using the findings of this investigation. For 64 days, routine wastewater samples of influent and effluent were taken. Changes in pH, percent decrease, and the amount of P adsorbed were all used as performance indicators for filters. P removal and recovery differed among treatments and media in the batch experiments. The minerals calcite, wollastonite, and hydroxylapatite performed the best. Additionally, coral sands, activated carbon, and eggshells decreased and absorb P. The lowest P reductions and adsorption rates were found in the remaining materials. The rates of P removal and adsorption by the three column filters were comparable. Over a 4-hour hydraulic retention time, the columns attained an average P decrease of 12.53% and an average P adsorption of 0.649 mg PO4-P/ kg medium. After 31 days for two of the columns and 36 days for the third, saturation was attained. The pH of the effluent was consistently buffered by the filter material to between 6.0 and 7.0, with no signs of buffer capacity degrading after saturation. No P species could be found inthe filter media's crystalline structure using XRD analysis. This study provides knowledge on the performance of massive column filters functioning in sophisticated, ecologically engineered wastewater treatment systems, as well as insight into how the chosen media behave during P removal and recovery programs.