Optimization of Initial Turbidity and Coagulant Concentration to Remove Turbidity Using Moringa oleifera Seed

Abstract

Objective:Coagulation of <i>Moringa oleifera</i> seeds was studied to determine the optimal conditions in treating a turbid water.Method:Jar-test experiments were performed at various rapid mixing (90-250 rpm; 1-2 min), slow mixing (10-60 rpm; 10-50 min), initial turbidity (100-500 NTU), coagulant doses (200-1,500 mg/L), and pH (2-12) in synthetic wastewater. Response surface analysis was used to optimize the coagulation in jar-test experiments.Results and Discussion:The optimal conditions for turbidity removal with <i>M. oleifera</i> were 200 rpm of rapid-mixing speed for 1 min, 40 rpm of slow-mixing speed for 20 min, and pH 8. The coagulation efficiency was found to be dependent on initial turbidity of water samples. Highest turbidity removals (96.5%) were obtained for water with very high initial turbidity (500 NTU). The effects of initial turbidity and coagulant dose were successfully analyzed by the response surface analysis. Within the design boundaries, turbidity removal was more sensitive to changes in initial turbidity than to changes in coagulant dose.Conclusions:The quadratic model between initial turbidity and coagulant for turbidity removal was shown. <i>M. oleifera</i> can be used as a potential coagulant especially for high turbidity water.