Abstract
Several natural polymeric flocculants are used for water purification. Natural polymers, mainly polysaccharides, by virtue of being biodegradable, non-toxic, shear stable and easily available, are becoming popular in domestic and industrial effluent treatment. Okra gum obtained from seedpods of Hibiscus esculentus is an anionic polysaccharide. It is used as flocculant for removal of solid wastes from tannery effluent in this study. Jar test method has been used for flocculation studies. Effects of polymer concentration, contact time and pH on flocculation efficiency of okra gum have been investigated. It was found that okra gum acts as a very effective flocculant, capable of removing more than 95 percent suspended solid and 69 percent dissolved solid from the effluent. X-ray diffractogram patterns were used to suggest the mechanism of flocculation. The most effective concentration of okra gum is found to be 0.04 mg/L. The maximum solid removal was observed after first hour of contact time. The flocculation efficiency was almost independent of pH variation.
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