Arsenic Removal with

Bayoxide® E33 Ferric Oxide Media

& SORB 33® As Adsorption

Frank Stanish
Severn Trent Services, Inc.

AWWA New York Conference

Saratoga Springs, NY
April 15, 2015
Agenda

 Background on arsenic
 Arsenic Toxicity
 Sources of arsenic
 Arsenic in Water
 Arsenic Regulations
 Arsenic Treatment Methods
 Case Study Problem and Solution:
 Hilltown Township Arsenic Removal Project
 Frequently Asked Questions

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Arsenic Background

 Natural occurring metalloid element

 Atomic Symbol: As
 Atomic number: 33
 Atomic Weight: 74.92

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Arsenic Toxicity

 USEPA Group A Human Carcinogen

 Short-term (acute) and long-term (chronic) effects
 Skin, lung and bladder cancer
 Acute GI damage
 Cardiac problems
 Vomiting / Diarrhea
 Dehydration
 Partial paralysis / blindness
 Hemolysis
 Vertigo
 Shock / Death
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Arsenic Chemistry

Arsenic found in ground waters is normally in an inorganic form as a

soluble oxyanion species. It has 2 valence states, As(III) and As(V).

“Oxidized” As(V) Oxyanion Dissociation

H3AsO4  H2AsO4- + H+ pKs = 2.2

H2AsO4-  HAsO42- + H+ pKs = 6.9

HAsO42-  AsO43- + H+ pKs = 11.5

“Reduced” As(III) Oxyanion Dissociation

H3AsO3  H2AsO3- + H+ pH 6 - 8

In waters within a natural pH range, the following species are present:

H3AsO3, H2AsO3-, H2AsO4- & HAsO42-

As(III) occurs mainly under reducing conditions, e.g., in the absence of oxygen.
When this water comes in contact with air, As(III) is oxidized to As(V).
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Arsenic Sources in US Drinking Water

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USEPA Arsenic Rule & Severn Trent’s Role

Timeline - Lower Potable Water Arsenic Levels

Current Limit in 1990’s - 50 g/L
1993 WHO Recommends 10 g/L
1994 USEPA Recommends 2-20 g/L
2000 New EC Directive
2003 UK Adopts 10 g/L Standard
2006 USEPA Compliance for 10 g/L MCL

Severn Trent Water

Severn Trent Services’ Sister Company in the UK
16 Well Water Sites with As > 10 g/L
Total Treatment Capacity - 46.8 MGD (177 ML/Day) since 2003

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As Removal – Treatment Selection
 Adsorption
 Simple & non-regenerative in most cases
 Single step process for most applications
 Coagulation/Filtration
 Cost effective for large scale systems (over 4 MGD)
 Effective for high Fe/Mn waters
 No chemicals besides disinfection if Fe/As wgt ratio > 25
 Reverse Osmosis
 Effective if other TDS must be removed
 Won’t remove As(III)
 Ion Exchange
 Good for waters with high As & pH and low SO4 & HCO3
 Hybrid resins with impregnated Fe Oxide – Selective for As
 Requires regeneration/postreatment; won’t remove As(III)
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SORB 33® Adsorption with Bayoxide® E33 Media

 SORB 33® - Severn Trent’s Adsorption Process

 STS & Lanxess Partnered to Develop Granular Ferric Oxide
(GFO) Media for As Removal
 Lanxess: Large Technical Oxide Producer
 Specialists in Iron Oxide Technologies
 Bayoxide® E33 (GFO) - Adsorption Media
 Exclusive Agreement between STS & Lanxess
 NSF Standard 61 Approved

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Adsorption - SORB 33® Systems
Water Flows through a bed of media
 Pros
 Easy Operation
 Little automation
 Simple Maintenance
 Not complex
 Lowest Capital
 Commonly lowest O&M
 Cons
 Complex Waters with multi
contaminants
 Causes low bed volumes
Most accepted technology
 Majority of projects in US have
selected adsorption
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Adsorption - SORB 33® Systems
Bernallilo, NM
Four 4’-Ø Adsorbers
450 gpm

Loma Linda, CA
Four 14’-Ø Adsorbers
3,000 gpm

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Adsorptive Media Pilot Testing – 3rd Party
 Breakthrough Curves – determine best performance
 4 different medias tested at Mesa, AZ by DSWA
B ed V o lu m e v s. A rsen ic

35

30

25

A v erage In flu en t
Arsenic, ppb

20
W R T Z33
G FH
S o lm etex A sX n p
15
B ayo x id e E 3 3

10

0
0 1 0 ,0 0 0 2 0 ,0 0 0 3 0 ,0 0 0 4 0 ,0 0 0 5 0 ,0 0 0 6 0 ,0 0 0
B ed V o lu m es

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 Test Evaluation – Breakthrough Curves
Breakthrough Curve Measures Media Performance - Longevity
 Arsenic effluent levels vs volume treated (“BV’s” or gallons H2O/cu ft of media)
 As Breakthrough – Point at which media needs replacement
 The higher the BV’s to breakthrough, the lower the operating cost
Typical SORB 33® Arsenic Adsorption Curve
40

Influent As
Concentration (μg/L)

30

20

10 As MCL
Treated
Water As As Breakthrough

0
0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000 125,000 150,000
Time (based on 75% Use Factor): 6 Mos 12 Mos 18 Mos
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Bed Volumes of Water Treated (BV’s)
 On-site Pilot Test Program

Program Scope PG
P-01

 Test Protocol

S-06
Vent
V-11

E33 Feed

 4”- Clear Column with Sample

P-04
B’wash Discharge

Media P-01

S-08
Backwash

 Manual Valves P-03

B’wash Supply
Sample
P-04

 Simple Instruments
P-02

FI/FQI
P-02
 Consistent Water Supply FQI FI P-03
PDI

 Data Collection & Monitor

Rate Set

Effluent/Media Backwash
E33
 Weekly Sampling
P-09

GFO
Media
Pres Reg’r

 2-6 Month Program

Media Media Treated

Well
Water Drain Support Water
Or
Backwash
Effluent Rate Set
S-07

Treated Water
Sample
/Drain

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Coagulation / Filtration - Omni-SORB™ Media
 Product Composition
 5% Manganese Dioxide (MnO2)
impregnated quartz (sand)
 Non-porous blackish gray
“catalytic” filtration media
 Dense media – 88 lb/ft3
 Screen Size – 18 x 60 mesh
 Dustless – facilitates backwash
 Producer
 Fermavi (Brazil) – Mines rich MnO2 ore, refines into product
 Media Life – 9+ Years; Disposable as nonhazardous
waste
 Service Conditions
 Filtration rates of 7-10 gpm/ft2
 Backwash rates of 14-16 gpm/ft2 Severn Trent Services 15
Coagulation / Filtration - Omni-SORB™ Media

 Coagulation / Filtration
 Iron Removal
 Removes Fe and Mn
 Removal As/Fe/Mn
 Needs high Iron level
 Fe:As - 25:1 or better
 As/Fe/Mn or Fe/Mn
 Catalyze the Fe and Mn in
an oxidation/precipitation
process
 Coagulation / Filtration of Fe
oxide & Mn oxide
 Ferric chloride addition if
needed
 As adsorbed by Fe oxide
 Backwash

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Omni-SORB Systems
 Parallel Flow Filters
 Automated Valves
 Process Controls & PLC

Rozel, KS – 600 gpm

Fe & Mn Removal
Three 6’-Ø Filters

Houghton, NY – 700 gpm

As Coag Filtration
Four 7’-Ø Filters
N+1 Redundancy
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Application Inquiry to
Full Scale System …
Step 1

Site Qualification Form

 Complete & Submit
 Client & Contact Info
 Flows, contaminants &
concentrations
Severn Trent Analysis
 Conceptualize
 Design
 Flexibility
 Budget Proposal
 Budget Capital
 Budget O&M
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Water Quality
 Characterization Key to Design
 Site Qualify Form’s analytical table highlights key species
 Key Species
 Arsenic (As, g/L) – Bypass if As <25; Series if As >25
 pH (no units) – Use CO2 or Acid to adjust if water pH >8.0 and/or high
SiO2
 Phosphate (PO4 or P mg/L) – Consumes media capacity; Use Omni-
SORB if PO4 > 0.8 (0.3 mg/L as P)
 Silica (SiO2, mg/L) – Coats media above 40; use pH adjust
 Iron (Fe, mg/L) – If Fe >0.2, As is reduced; chlorination required; If Fe
>0.35, consider Omni-SORB
 Manganese (Mn, mg/L) – If Mn >0.06, Mn buildup in bed, makes
backwash difficult; chlorination required; Omni-SORB pretreat
 Vanadium (V, g/L) – Consumes media capacity; pH adjust helps
reduce its effect

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Sizing & Estimate
Summary …
Adsorption Example
Process Sizes System
 Vessel Size
 Media Volume
 Performance – BV’s, etc.
 Flows Configuration
 Operating Costs: Includes
annualized media replace
& chemicals
Proposals Estimates Cost
 ROM or Budget
Rough Order of Magnitude
 Issue to Client
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 Media Replacement & Disposal
Media Removal
 STS subcontractors
 Vacuum removal or
vactor truck
 Fill rolloffs or sacks
 TCLP analysis – verify
media is non-hazardous
Media Replacement
 Gravity fill - 52 ft3 sacks
 Hydraulic fill - Roof Hatch Added

eductors

Aqua Pennsylvania Site Severn Trent Services 21

Roof Hatch Added for Gravity Fill
30 Minute Fill - 52 ft³ per Vessel
Case Study – Hilltown Township, PA

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Hilltown Township Well No. 2
Hybrid Fe/Mn Filtration & As Adsorption
 Well No. 3 – 300 gpm
 Multiple Contaminants
 Arsenic – 15 µg/L
 Iron – 250 µg/L
 Manganese – 110 µg/L
 Aside from As removal, needed to remove Fe & Mn
 Black & red water issue
 Hybrid design – 1 OmniSORB filter & 2 E33 Adsorbers
 Oxidize & filter all of the water to remove Fe & Mn
 Treat 50% of filtered water through adsorption
 Bypass and blend remainder
 System in service for 9 years
 Bayoxide E33 lasted 7 years before replacement Severn Trent Services 23
Hilltown Township
Hybrid Fe/Mn Filtration & As Adsorption

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 Questions?
Acknowledgements:
Gary Weaver - Principal
Castle Valley Consultants, Inc.
10 Beulah Road
215 348 8257
gjweaver@casval.com

Severn Trent Water Purification, Inc.

Gary M. Lohse, P.E. – Regional Sales Manager
3000 Advance Lane
Colmar, PA 18915

T: +1 215 859-3814
E: glohse@stservices.com

www.severntrentservices.com