What can be done to improve water quality. Improving water quality. Moscow suburbs will be brought to "Clean Water"

The composition of water can be different. After all, on the way to our home, she meets many obstacles. There are different methods of improving water quality, the general goal of which is to get rid of dangerous bacteria, humic compounds, excess salt, toxic substances, etc.

Water is the main component of the human body. In the energy-information exchange, it is one of the most important links. Scientists have proved that thanks to the special network structure of water, which is created by hydrogen bonds, information is received, accumulated and transmitted.

The aging of the body and the volume of water in it are directly related. Therefore, water should be consumed every day, making sure that it is of high quality.

Water is a powerful natural solvent, therefore, meeting different rocks on its way, it is quickly enriched with them. However, not all elements found in the composition of water are useful to humans. Some of them negatively affect the processes occurring in the human body, others can cause various diseases. In order to protect consumers from harmful and dangerous impurities, measures are being taken to improve the quality of drinking water.

Ways to improve

There are basic methods for improving the quality of drinking water and special ones. The former consists in clarification, disinfection and bleaching, the latter involves the implementation of procedures for defluorination, iron removal and desalination.

When bleaching and clarification, colored colloids and suspended particles are removed from the water. The purpose of the disinfection procedure is to eliminate bacteria, infections and viruses. Special methods - mineralization and fluoridation - involve the introduction of substances necessary for the body into the composition of water.

The nature of the contamination determines the use of the following cleaning methods:

1. Mechanical - consists in removing impurities using sieves, filters and gratings of coarse impurities.
2. Physical - involves boiling, UV and irradiation with γ-rays.
3. Chemical, in which reagents are added to the wastewater, which provoke the formation of precipitation. Today, the main method of disinfecting drinking water is chlorination. Tap water, according to SanPiN, must contain a residual chlorine concentration of 0.3-0.5 mg / l.
4. For biological treatment special irrigation or filtration fields are required. A network of canals is formed, which are filled with sewage. After cleaning with air, sunlight and microorganisms, they seep into the soil, forming humus on the surface.

For biological treatment, which can also be carried out in artificial conditions, there are special facilities - biofilters and aeration tanks. A biofilter is a brick or concrete structure, inside of which there is a porous material - gravel, slag or crushed stone. Microorganisms are applied to them, purifying water as a result of their vital activity.

In aerotanks, with the help of incoming air, activated sludge is moved into Wastewater Oh. Secondary settling tanks are designed to separate the bacterial film from purified water. Destruction in domestic waters of pathogenic microorganisms is carried out by disinfection with chlorine.

To assess the quality of water, it is necessary to determine the quantity harmful substances, caught there after processing (chlorine, aluminum, polyacrylamide, etc.), and anthropogenic substances (nitrates, copper, petroleum products, manganese, phenols, etc.). Organoleptic and radiation indicators should also be taken into account.

How to improve water quality at home

To improve the quality of tap water at home, additional purification is required, for which household filters are used. To date, manufacturers offer them in huge quantities.

One of the most popular are filters based on reverse osmosis.

They are actively used not only at home, but also at public catering establishments, in hospitals, sanatoriums, and at manufacturing enterprises.

The filtration system provides for auto-flushing, which must be turned on before filtration begins. By means of a polyamide membrane through which water passes, it is freed from contaminants - purification is carried out at the molecular level. Such installations are ergonomic and compact, and the quality of the filtered water is very high.

Water Treatment: Video

Based on the results of a home test, the quality of your tap water can be improved.

Drinking water supplied to city ​​apartment, has already passed the stage of cleaning and disinfection at the water treatment plant.

AT tap water there may be impurities and contaminants that are either not removed by plumbing treatment facilities completely, or appear in the water already on the way to the consumer.

Many substances that pollute water contribute to the formation of cloudy suspensions, cause bad smell, characteristic taste, and can also color water in one color or another.

However, the presence of some impurities may not affect the appearance tap water.

Simple ways to make tap water cleaner and safer .

• Before using tap water, drain it for a few minutes, as it quickly stagnates in pipes.
• Let the water sit in an open vessel to allow any residual chlorine to escape.
• Then filter the water through any filter. Even the simplest accumulative type, better than nothing. Filtration will remove the suspension and part of the microorganisms from the water.

You have found cloudiness in the water.

muddy water- this is the result of the presence of suspended and colloidal impurities in the water, or an increased content of air in the water.

Suspended and colloidal particles- these are very small particles: compounds of aluminum and iron, silicon, waste products and decay of plants and animals.

To purify water from these contaminants, it is recommended to use a combination of mechanical filters (with inert loading) and carbon filters with activated carbon loading.

You have discovered a color in the water.

Color may be due to dissolved and suspended particles of mineral and organic origin.

yellow tint of water- the presence of humic substances (humic and fulvic acids), or an increased content of iron.

Gray shade of water- high content of manganese, iron

reddish brown precipitate- the presence of oxidized iron in the water.

To purify water from these contaminants, it is recommended to use a preliminary treatment on a mechanical filter and then a filter with a carbon load or a reverse osmosis system.

Did you find the smell in the water? .

Smell fishy or musty- presence of organochlorine compounds in water.

Smell of hydrogen sulfide (rotten eggs smell)- ingress of sewage into the water supply system or the vital activity of bacteria that form hydrogen sulfide from sulfates.

Chlorine smell- high content of residual chlorine in the water.

The smell of petroleum products- ingress of oil products into the water supply system.

Chemical smell, phenol smell- water pollution by industrial effluents, in particular, effluents from organic chemistry enterprises.

To purify water from these contaminants, it is recommended to use a carbon-loaded filter or a reverse osmosis system.

Did you find a taste in the water .

Salty taste- high content of sodium and magnesium salts

To purify water from these pollutants, it is recommended to use a reverse osmosis system.

Taste metallic- high iron content.

Taste due to organic impurities.

Alkaline taste- high alkalinity of water, increased hardness, high content of dissolved substances.

You found scale in the kettle.

Scale indicates the presence of excess calcium and magnesium salts in the water.

Nitrates in water

The source of nitrates in water is fertilizers and wastewater that enters surface and underground water bodies. The high content of nitrates in water is dangerous for humans and especially for children. It is known that in the body part of the nitrates is converted into a more toxic substance - nitrites.

It should be noted that a universal filter that cleans everything: from chlorine, from iron, from organics, from metals, from bacteria, and ... does not exist.

For each type of pollution, a certain type of filter is used. Therefore, the optimal treatment plant should consist of a properly selected set of nodes, each of which removes a certain type of pollution.

In any case, systems of treatment plants, consisting of several successively operating filters with different loads, provide better water purification than a filter with the same type of load.

To purify drinking water, as a rule, a set of filters is used with various loads or membranes corresponding to the type of contaminants that need to be removed from the water. Often the treatment system includes water disinfection.

Below are the main components of drinking water treatment plants to help you choose the right design.

Mechanical filters remove suspended solids from the water.

Porous materials (usually ceramic) are used as loading.

Carbon filters made on the basis of activated carbon, which is a good adsorbent.

The carbon filter purifies water from residual chlorine, dissolved gases, organic compounds, including toxins, odor and improves the taste of water.

Filters for iron removal remove iron and manganese. For their manufacture, special polymers are used that accelerate the oxidation of the metal. The precipitate obtained as a result of the reaction is retained by the filter system.

Filters with ion-exchange loading. Depending on the type of ion exchange load, these filters remove various ions from the water, including those effective for reducing hardness and removing nitrates from water.

Reverse osmosis water treatment plants

The reverse osmosis system includes a special membrane through which drinking water is passed. The membranes retain 95 - 99.5% of all impurities.

It must be remembered that most of the useful substances necessary for the life of the body are also removed from the water. Such water disrupts the functioning of the body. First of all, this refers to the strength of bones, which depends on the amount of calcium in the blood.

The lack of trace elements in water affects the functioning of the liver, kidneys, nervous and immune systems. Therefore, salts and trace elements necessary for the body should be added to water purified by reverse osmosis.

Installations for water disinfection based on ultraviolet radiation.

Ultraviolet radiation inactivates pathogens. These settings are required for country houses and in the countryside. In urban apartments, such systems are used in case of ineffective disinfection of tap water at central treatment facilities.

Technical requirements and rules for the operation of a drinking water treatment plant.

• the system must provide effective water purification.
• non-toxic materials must be used for the construction of plant components (housing, pipes, loading…).
• extracted from the water, during the purification process, the impurities should not re-contaminate the purified water.
• timely washing and replacement of filter elements and bactericidal lamps is obligatory.

note that optimal choice cleaning systems (type of filters, loading, method of disinfection, etc.) can only be produced based on the results of a laboratory chemical analysis your drinking water.

What parameters it is desirable to check in your water:

Hydrogen index (pH), total mineralization, organic substances (permanganate oxidizability, or total organic carbon), petroleum products, nitrates, nitrites, cyanides, fluorides, hardness, heavy metals, common coliform bacteria, Giardia cysts, pesticides, organohalogen compounds.

In addition, after selecting and installing a purification system, take samples of purified water to the laboratory for chemical analysis to verify the effectiveness of purification.

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Methods for improving water quality make it possible to free water from microorganisms, suspended particles, excess salts, foul-smelling gases. They are divided into 2 groups: basic and special.

Basic: cleaning and disinfection.

Hygienic requirements for the quality of drinking water are set out in the Sanitary Rules “Drinking Water. Hygienic….” (2001).

- Cleaning. The goal is to get rid of suspended particles and colored colloids to improve physical properties(transparency and color). Cleaning methods depend on the source of the water supply. Underground interstratal water sources require less cleaning. The water of open reservoirs is subject to pollution, so they are potentially dangerous.

Purification is achieved by three activities:

- settling: after the passage of water from the river through the intake grids, in which large pollutants remain, the water enters large tanks - settling tanks, with a slow flow through which in 4-8 hours. large particles fall to the bottom.

- coagulation: to settle small suspended solids, water enters the tanks, where it is coagulated - polyacrylamide or aluminum sulfate is added to it, which, under the influence of water, becomes flakes, to which small particles adhere and dyes are adsorbed, after which they settle to the bottom of the tank.

- filtration: water is slowly passed through a layer of sand and a filter cloth or other (slow and fast filters) - the remaining suspended solids, helminth eggs and 99% of the microflora are retained here. The filters are washed 1-2 times a day with a reverse flow of water.

- Disinfection.

To ensure epidemic safety (destruction of pathogenic microbes and viruses), water is disinfected: by chemical or physical methods.

Chemical Methods : chlorination and ozonation.

BUT) Chlorination in odes with chlorine gas (at large stations) or bleach (at small ones).

The availability of the method, the low cost and reliability of disinfection, as well as the multivariance, i.e. the ability to disinfect water at waterworks, mobile installations, in a well, at a field camp ...

The effectiveness of water chlorination depends on: 1) the degree of purification of water from suspended solids, 2) the injected dose, 3) the thoroughness of water mixing, 4) sufficient exposure of water with chlorine, and 5) the thoroughness of checking the quality of chlorination by residual chlorine.

The bactericidal effect of chlorine is greatest in the first 30 minutes and depends on the dose and water temperature - at low temperatures, disinfection is extended up to 2 hours.

In accordance with sanitary requirements, 0.3-0.5 mg / l of residual chlorine should remain in the water after chlorination (does not affect the human body and organoleptic properties of water).

Depending on the dose used, there are:

Conventional chlorination - 0.3-0.5 mg / l

Hyperchlorination - 1-1.5 mg / l, during the period of epidemic danger. Followed by activated charcoal to remove excess chlorine.

Chlorination modifications:

- double chlorination provides for the supply of chlorine to waterworks twice: before the sedimentation tanks, and the second after the filters. This improves coagulation and discoloration of water, inhibits the growth of microflora in treatment facilities, and increases the reliability of disinfection.

- Chlorination with ammonization provides for the introduction of a solution of ammonia into the disinfected water, and after 0.5-2 minutes - chlorine. At the same time, chloramines are formed in the water, which also have a bactericidal effect.

- Rechlorination provides for the addition of large doses of chlorine to water (10-20 mg / l or more). This allows you to reduce the contact time of water with chlorine to 15-20 minutes and obtain reliable disinfection from all types of microorganisms: bacteria, viruses, rickettsiae, cysts, dysenteric amoeba, tuberculosis.

Water with residual chlorine of at least 0.3 mg/l must reach the consumer

B) Water ozonation method. Currently, it is one of the promising ones (France, USA, in Moscow, Yaroslavl, Chelyabinsk).

Ozone (O3) - causes bactericidal properties and discoloration and elimination of tastes and odors occur. An indirect indicator of the effectiveness of ozonation is the residual ozone at the level of 0.1-0.3 mg/l.

The advantages of ozone over chlorine: ozone does not form toxic compounds (organochlorine compounds) in water, improves the organoleptic properties of water and provides a bactericidal effect with a shorter contact time (up to 10 minutes).

C) Decontamination of individual stocks in methods (chemical and physical) are used at home and in the field:

Oligodynamic action of silver. By using special devices by electrolytic treatment of water. Silver ions have a bacteriostatic effect. Microorganisms stop reproducing, although they remain alive and even capable of causing disease. Therefore, silver is mainly used for preserving water during long-term storage in navigation, astronautics, etc.

To disinfect individual water supplies, tablets containing chlorine are used: Aquasept, Pantocid…..

Boiling (5-30 min), while many chemical contaminants are preserved;

Household appliances - filters providing several degrees of purification;

Physical Methods water disinfection

Advantage over chemical ones: they do not change the chemical composition of water, do not worsen its organoleptic properties. But due to their high cost and the need for careful preliminary water treatment, only ultraviolet irradiation is used in water pipes,

- Boiling (was, cm)

- Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. Advantages: in the speed of action, the effectiveness of the destruction of vegetative and spore forms of bacteria, eggs of helminths and viruses, does not form a smell and taste. Rays with a wavelength of 200-275 nm have a bactericidal effect.

To bring the water quality of water supply sources to the requirements of SanPiN - 01, there are water treatment methods that are carried out at waterworks.

There are basic and special methods improving water quality.

I . To main methods include clarification, bleaching and disinfection.

Under clarification understand the removal of suspended particles from water. Under discoloration understand the removal of colored substances from water.

Clarification and bleaching is achieved by 1) settling, 2) coagulation and 3) filtration. After the passage of water from the river through the intake grids, in which large pollutants remain, the water enters large tanks - settling tanks, with a slow flow through which large particles fall to the bottom in 4-8 hours. To settle small suspended solids, water enters the tanks, where it is coagulated - polyacrylamide or aluminum sulfate is added to it, which under the influence of water becomes, like snowflakes, flakes to which small particles adhere and dyes are adsorbed, after which they settle to the bottom of the tank. Further water is coming to the final stage of purification - filtration: it is slowly passed through a layer of sand and a filter cloth - here the remaining suspended solids, helminth eggs and 99% of microflora are retained.

Decontamination methods

1.Chemical: 2.Physical:

-chlorination

- use of sodium hypochlorite-boiling

-ozonation -U\V irradiation

-use of silver -ultrasonic

treatment

- use filters

Chemical methods.

1. The most widely used chlorination method. For this, chlorination of water with gas (at large stations) or bleach (at small ones) is used. When chlorine is added to water, it hydrolyzes, forming hydrochloric and hypochlorous acids, which, easily penetrating through the shell of microbes, kill them.

A) Chlorination in small doses.

The essence of this method lies in the choice of the working dose according to the chlorine demand or the amount of residual chlorine in the water. To do this, trial chlorination is carried out - the selection of a working dose for a small amount of water. 3 working doses are obviously taken. These doses are added to 3 flasks of 1 liter of water. Water is chlorinated in summer for 30 minutes, in winter for 2 hours, after which residual chlorine is determined. It should be 0.3-0.5 mg / l. This amount of residual chlorine, on the one hand, indicates the reliability of disinfection, and on the other hand, it does not impair the organoleptic properties of water and is not harmful to health. After that, the dose of chlorine required to disinfect all water is calculated.

B) Hyperchlorination.

Hyperchlorination - residual chlorine - 1-1.5 mg / l, used during the period of epidemic danger. Very fast, reliable and effective method. It is carried out with large doses of chlorine up to 100 mg/l with mandatory subsequent dechlorination. Dechlorination is carried out by passing water through activated carbon. This method is used in field conditions. In field conditions, fresh water is treated with chlorine tablets: pantocide containing chloramine (1 table - 3 mg of active chlorine), or aquacid (1 table - 4 mg); and also with iodine - iodine tablets (3 mg of active iodine). The number of tablets required for use is calculated depending on the volume of water.

c) Water disinfection non-toxic and non-hazardous sodium hypochlorite used instead of chlorine, which is dangerous to use and poisonous. In St. Petersburg, up to 30% of drinking water is disinfected by this method, and in Moscow, since 2006, all waterworks have been transferred to it.

2.Ozonation.

It is applied on small water pipes with very clean water. Ozone is obtained in special devices - ozonizers, and then it is passed through water. Ozone is a stronger oxidizing agent than chlorine. It not only disinfects water, but also improves its organoleptic properties: discolors water, eliminates unpleasant odors and tastes. Ozonation is considered best method disinfection, but this method is very expensive, so chlorination is more often used. An ozonator requires sophisticated equipment.

3.The use of silver."Silvering" of water with the help of special devices by electrolytic treatment of water. Silver ions effectively destroy all microflora; they conserve water and allow it to be stored for a long time, which is used in long-term expeditions on water transport, by divers to preserve drinking water for a long time. The best household filters use silver plating as an additional method of disinfection and water conservation.

Physical methods.

1.Boiling. A very simple and reliable disinfection method. The disadvantage of this method is that it cannot be used to treat large quantities of water. Therefore, boiling is widely used in everyday life;

2.Usage household appliances - filters providing several degrees of purification; adsorbing microorganisms and suspended solids; neutralizing a number of chemical impurities, incl. rigidity; providing absorption of chlorine and organochlorine substances. Such water has favorable organoleptic, chemical and bacterial properties;

3. Exposure to UV/UV rays. It is the most effective and widespread method of physical disinfection of water. The advantages of this method are the speed of action, the effectiveness of the destruction of vegetative and spore forms of bacteria, helminth eggs and viruses. Rays with a wavelength of 200-295 nm have a bactericidal effect. For the disinfection of distilled water in hospitals and pharmacies, argon-mercury lamps are used. On large water pipes, powerful mercury-quartz lamps are used. On small water pipelines, non-submersible installations are used, and on large ones - submersible ones, with a capacity of up to 3000 m 3 / hour. UV exposure is highly dependent on suspended solids. Reliable operation of UV installations requires high transparency and colorlessness of water, and the rays act only through a thin layer of water, which limits the application of this method. UV irradiation is more commonly used to disinfect drinking water from art wells, as well as recycled water from swimming pools.

II. Special methods for improving water quality.

-desalination,

-softening,

-fluorination - With a lack of fluorine, it is carried out fluorination water to 0.5 mg/l by adding sodium fluoride or other reagents to the water. In the Russian Federation, there are currently only a few systems for fluoridation of drinking water, while in the United States, 74% of the population receives fluoridated tap water,

-defluorization - With an excess of fluorine, the water is subjected to defrosting fluorine precipitation methods, dilution or ion sorption,

deodorization (removing unpleasant odors),

-degassing,

-deactivation (exemption from radioactive substances),

-iron removal - To reduce rigidity water artesian wells boiling, reagent methods and the ion exchange method are used.

Removal of iron compounds on artesian wells (iron removal) and hydrogen sulfide ( degassing) is carried out by aeration followed by sorption on a special soil.

To low-mineralized water mineral substances. This method is used in the manufacture of bottled mineral water, sold through the distribution network. By the way, the consumption of drinking water purchased in the distribution network is increasing all over the world, which is especially important for tourists, as well as for residents of disadvantaged areas.

To reduce total mineralization groundwater, distillation, ion sorption, electrolysis, and freezing are used.

It should be noted that these special water treatment (conditioning) methods are high-tech and expensive and are used only in cases where it is not possible to use an acceptable source for water supply.