Improving removal efficiency of sedimentation tanks using different inlet and outlet position

Abstract

Sedimentation by gravity is the oldest water treatment. Inlet and outlet of rectangular sedimentation tank are often located in the middle of the tank. The present investigation studies the effect of changing inlet and outlet position of rectangular sedimentation tank on removal efficiency using Computational Fluid Dynamics method. Two different configurations are proposed and they have been tested with varying particles diameters and concentration. Numerical model ability to describe flow field behaviour inside the tank is confirmed by an experimentation data. Results show that inlet and outlet position influence the flow field and removal efficiency of sedimentation tanks, especially for the case of fine particles (50 and 120µm).

Keywords

• sedimentation, rectangular sedimentation tank
• computational fluid dynamics
• numerical model
• flow field
• removal efficiency