Influence of effluent type on the performance of chitosan as a coagulant

Abstract

The use of chitosan as a bio-polymeric coagulant has continued to attract interest in water treatment due to its biodegradability and non-toxicity. Its ability to treat effluents of high organic content has been investigated in some food processing industries. The focus of the present study is to compare results of the use of chitosan in the treatment of effluent from a Sugar Processing Plant (SPP), with those obtained from the treatment of wastewater from a Milk Processing Plant (MPP) and from a Brewery Processing Plant (BPP), in order to determine the influence of effluent type on the impurities removal efficiency. The treatment of the MPP provided the best removal efficiency (99% suspended solids removal and 70% COD removal) in comparison to the SPP (98% suspended solids removal and 11% COD removal) and BPP (95% suspended solids removal and 50% COD removal). The optimum pH value varied as a function of the type of effluent with BPP= 4.5, SPP = 4.5 and MPP =7. The results indicate that chitosan is not very efficient for the removal of dissolved matter. A relationship between total suspended solids (TSS) and total dissolved solids (TDS) has been developed.