1 Introduction

Many physical and chemical separation processes are used in waste water treatment industry.
Clarification is a salience physical separation process for remove solid particles or suspended
solids from liquid. Concentrated solid particles which discharged from the bottom of the tank
are known as sludge and float to the surface of liquid are called scum.

Generally clarifiers can be divided in to some categories by considering operation or shape of

it. When considering the operation, Clarifier can be divided in to two types.
 Primary Clarifier
 Secondary Clarifier
As well as when consider the shape of clarifier, there are mainly three types.
 Inclined plate/ Lamella
 Rectangular Clarifier
 Circular Clarifier
In this design project consider the secondary clarifier for latex waste water treatment process.

1.1 Factors that affect clarifier performance

 Hydraulic& Load factors
 Wastewater flow(ADWF, PDWF, PWWF)
[ADWF-average dry weather flow; PDWF-peak dry weather flow;
PWWF-peak wet weather flow]
 Surface overflow rate
 Solid loading rate
 Hydraulic retention time
 Underflow recycle ratio
 External physical features
 Tank configuration
 Surface area
 Depth
 Flow distribution
 Turbulence in conveyance structures
 Internal physical features
 Presence of flocculation zone
  Sludge collection mechanism
 Inlet arrangement
 Weir type, length, position
 Baffling
 Hydraulic flow patterns & turbulence
 Density & convection currents
 Site condition
 Wind & wave action
 Water temperature variation
 Sludge characteristics
 MLSS concentration
 Sludge age
 Flocculation, settling & thickening characteristics
 Type of biological process[1]

1.2 Types of Clarifiers

1.2.1 Primary Clarifier
Primary treatment has applied a clarification process to separate the readily precipitated and
floatable solids from waste water. That is used as preliminary step in the further processing of
waste water. Well designed and operated primary clarifier should decrease between 50% to
70% of the suspended solids and 25% to 40% of BOD.[2]

1.2.2 Secondary Clarifier

The main difference between primary and secondary clarifiers is the density of the sludge
handled. Secondary sludge are generally less dense than primary sludge as well as effluent of
secondary clarifier is usually clearer than primary effluent.

1.2.3 Rectangular Clarifier

Rectangular clarifier is a common type of clarifier in waste water treatment process. Either
chain and flight solids collectors or traveling bridge type collectors are used in this clarifier.
The constructions of these types of clarifiers are cheap due to construct multiple units with
common wall.
Length, width, depth of the tank, diffusers or ports, internal baffles, flocculation zones,
skimmers, scrapers or suction mechanism, sludge flights, type & location of weirs or
submerged outlets, location of sludge hoppers, tank covers and materials of construction are
included in design criteria of rectangular clarifiers.

Figure 1.1 Rectangular clarifier design features

1.2.4 Circular Clarifier

Circular clarifiers are most suitable with considering mechanism of sludge collection. There
are square, hexagonal, octagonal shapes of clarifier tanks are also established which closely
similar to the circular shape. But these types are not more popular in practically. There are
nearly all the advantages of circular clarifiers are given by these alternative shapes. The
disadvantage of circular clarifiers is to allocate more floor space than rectangular clarifier
tank in equivalent capacity due to the common wall construction.

Although the range of diameters of the tanks is from 3m to greater than 100m, in practically
diameters of tank are kept in less than 50m to avoid the adverse effects of wind on the
surface.

Figure 1.2 Circular clarifier design features

1.2.5 Design Criteria
Rectangular Clarifiers
 Less land & construction cost in a
multiple unit design
 Longer flow path & less chance
for short-circuiting than center-
feed/ peripheral overflow circular
clarifiers
 More even distribution of sludge
loads on collectors
Advantages
 Can be shallower
 Low head loss for flow
distribution
 Can be easily covered for odor
control
 More effective foam/ scum
trapping & positive removal
 Not proprietary
 Longer detention time for settled
sludge
 Possibly less effective for high
solid loading
Disadvantages  Increased maintenance of
collectors
Circular Clarifiers
 Short detention time for
settled sludge
 Better effect of dynamic
filtration
 Simple & more reliable
sludge-collecting system
 Low maintenance
requirements
 Center feed/ peripheral units
have higher potential for
short-circuiting
 Lower limits for effluent
weir loading
 Generally proprietary
 More susceptible to wind
effects
 High head loss for flow
distribution

When considering the all factors that affect for clarifiers, select circular clarifiers.

1.3 Purpose of circular clarifier and parts

 Influent control Stops or throttles the flow to clarifier
gate
 Influent channel or Transports wastewater to the clarifier
pipe

 Influent well Receives the wastewater from influent channel or pipe and
decreases flow velocity & regularly distributes across the upper
portion of the clarifier

 Effluent weir Ensures similar flow over all weirs.

 Effluent trough Receives treated wastewater from the clarifier

 Scum skimmer arm Collects floating particles or skims from the surface of
wastewater. Moves it to the scum trough
 Scum trough Receives floating particles which scraped by scum skimmer arm.

 Scum pipe Flows collected scum from skimmer box to a scum tank

 Drive unit Put to the collector to rotate

 Vertical drive cage Transmits power from drive unit to the sludge collector
mechanism

 Sludge collector Rotates around the bottom of the clarifier and drags settled solids
mechanism across clarifier bottom to a sludge collection pit.

 Blades and scraper Scrape sludge form bottom of clarifier to sump

squeegees

 Sump Collects the sludge before withdrawal

 Sludge withdrawal Removes the sludge from the clarifier.[3]

pipe

Flow rate = 10000l/hr

Retention time = 2.5 hr

2 REFERENCES

[1] C. D. F. o. t. W. E. Federation, "FUNCTIONS OF A FINAL CLARIFIER," in

CLARIFIER DESIGN, McGraw-Hil, 2005, p. 146.

[2] George Tchbanoglous, Franklin L. Burton, H. David Stensel, "Primary Sedimentation," in

Waste water Engineering Treatment and Reuse, Mc Graw Hill, pp. 396-397.

[3] C. s. university, in Operation of waste water treatment plants.