Estudio de la eficiencia de los coagulantes naturales con respecto a los coagulantes sintéticos utilizados en el tratamiento de agua potable

Abstract

In the treatment of drinking water, the coagulation process is one of the most important, since it reduces the negative charge of the colloidal particles and initiates the formation of micro flocs, so that later in the flocculation process the particles aggregate and form larger flocs that can sediment more quickly. For the coagulation and flocculation processes to be successful, it is necessary to use coagulants of chemical origin, such as aluminum sulfate, which has a number of disadvantages, including the formation of large volumes of sludge, as well as variations in the pH of the treated water, requiring an adjustment of the same. Therefore, it is necessary to find other types of coagulants that generate the least environmental impact, reaching removal percentages comparable to those obtained with conventional coagulants in the treatment of drinking water. The present research work focuses on a bibliographic review of the most commonly used natural coagulants in water treatment. To this end, physicochemical parameters of treated water such as color, pH, turbidity, BOD5, COD, electrical conductivity, alkalinity, among other parameters, were evaluated. Four natural coagulants that showed better effectiveness in water treatment were studied, of which, Moringa Oleífera is the most opted to be used in drinking water treatment, given that in the study conducted by (Feria Diaz et al., 2014) the removal percentage achieved is 97%, followed by Strychnos Potatorium that according to research conducted by (Uralimohan, 2015) in wastewater from a textile plant reached removal percentages of 69%, while (Muthuraman & Sasikala, 2014) suggests a removal percentage due to Strychnos Potatorium in a synthetic water of 90%. It is concluded based on the literature review that natural coagulants such as Moringa Oleífera, Strychnos Potatorium, Opuntia Ficus Indica, Caesalpinia Spinosa reach removal percentages in physicochemical parameters between the following ranges: 70%-90%; 69%-90%; 68%-91% and 19-58%, respectively.