J. Environ. Res. Develop.

Journal of Environmental Research And Development Vol. 7 No. 2, October-December 2012

ENHANCING FILTRATE QUALITY OF TURBID WATER

INCORPORATING SEEDS OF Strychnos potatorum, PADS
OF Cactus opuntia AND MUCILAGE EXTRACTED FROM
THE FRUITS OF Coccinia indica AS COAGULANTS
C. Nirmala Rani *1 and Jadhav M. V.2
1. Department of Civil Engineering, Late G.N. Sapkal Collage of Engineering, Anjaneri,
Nasik, University of Pune (INDIA)
2. Department of Civil Engineering, SRES’ College of Engineering, Kopargaon , University of
Pune (INDIA)

Received July 10, 2012 Accepted November 20,2012

ABSTRACT
In the present study the plant based coagulants namely, the seeds of Strychnos potatorum, pads
of Cactus opuntia and mucilage extracted from the fruits of Coccinia indica in powder forms
were applied to a water treatment sequence comprising coagulation-flocculation-sedimentation-
sand filtration. The study was conducted on synthetic turbid water created by kaolin. Emphasis
was given to the filtration aspect of the treatment using synthetic turbid water. The performance
of filter was defined by the quality of water and the head loss development across the filter bed.
The optimum dose obtained from Batch coagulation-sedimentation test conducted for S.
potatorum, Cactus and Coccinia indica were 1.5 mg/l, 30 mg/l, 0.5 mg/l were applied for
filtration test and turbid waters with the supernatant turbidities obtained from batch coagulation-
sedimentation test (14 NTU in the case of S. potatorum, 17 NTU in the case of Cactus and 13
NTU in the case of Coccinia indica) were fed as an influent to the filter. The filtrate turbidities
obtained after filtration were 0 NTU, 1NTU and 0 NTU which are lesser than 5 NTU (the
guideline value recommended by WHO).Thus the use of natural coagulants improved the filtrate
quality.
Key Words : Coagulation, Filtration, Polymer, Polyelectrolyte, Turbidity

INTRODUCTION and have been used in many developing

In rural areas of developing countries ground
water is the preferred source of drinking water
since it requires no or minimal treatment. In
rural areas if no suitable aquifers are available,
then clean water from the lakes, streams or
rivers are preferred by people. The simple
technologies used in such places are gravity
chemical feed with solution, hydraulic rapid
mixing and flocculation, horizontal flow
sedimentation and manually operated
1
filters .Water obtained from lakes and streams
are in turbid form. Coagulation is an essential
process in the treatment of turbid water.
Coagulants used for turbid water treatment
may be chemical based or plant based. Plant
based coagulants are natural polyelectrolytes
* Author for correspondence
countries to clarify turbid water. For home
water treatment the coagulants have to be used
in the form of powder or paste 90% of which
consists of substances other than
polyelectrolytes. Even under such conditions, a
few plant seeds proved to be effective
2
coagulants examples of seeds of the plant
speices of the family Loganiaceae-Strychnos
potatorum and Moringaceae- Moringa leifera
and Moringa stenopetala. The plant based
coagulants used in this study are seeds of
Strychnos potatorum, pads of Cactus opuntia
and mucilage extracted from the fruits of
Coccinia indica.
The batch coagulation-flocculation test
conducted using all three natural coagulants
proved to be more effective. Eventhough the
natural coagulants appeared effective in

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Journal of Environmental Research And Development
clarifying turbid water, the supernatant
turbidities of water after batch coagulation-
3
sedimentation test were more than 5 NTU.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
In the present study, a coagulation-filtration
test was used to examine the improvement in
the quality of turbid water by direct filtration
by applying the optimum dosages of each
coagulant obtained from the batch coagulation-
sedimentation test. The goal of this study is to
assess the suitability of this method for turbid
water in rural areas of developing countries.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
The natural coagulants used in this study are
powder of Strychnos potatorum seeds, powder
obtained from the pads of Cactus opuntia and
the powder of mucilage extracted from the
fruits of Coccinia indica. The seeds of S.
potatorum were purchased from an ayurvedic
medical shop at Chennai. Cactus opuntia pads
were purchased from a nursery at Bhagur. The
preparation of synthetic turbid water and
coagulant solutions are described below.
Preparation of turbid water sample
Turbid water used in this study was prepared
by adding 10gm of kaolin powder. It was
purchased from Space Laboratories Ltd,
Ambad at Nasik, India. Kaolin powder was
dried in an oven with the temperature of 105°C
for 5 hours. After that it was removed from the
oven and was embedded in desiccators for 30
minutes.100ml of distilled water was added to
the kaolin power and the suspension was kept
at room temperature for 24 hours and was
completely mixed for 20 minutes by electrical
blender. The suspension was left undisturbed
for 4 hours in order to settle the coarser
particles. One litre supernatant was transferred
to Erlenmeyer flask and was kept as stock
4-6
solution. From this stock solution, desired
turbidities were generated. In this study high
turbidity of 192 NTU was generated and
utilized for experimentation.
Powder of Strychnos potatorum seeds
S. potatorum seeds were purchased from the
ayurvedic medical shop at Chennai. They were
powdered and sieved through 150µm sieve,
and a 2% suspension was prepared with
1
distilled water .These seeds due to their hard
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J. Environ. Res. Develop.
Vol. 7 No. 2, October-December 2012
structure, could not be powdered in a grinder.
In such a case the seeds were kept immersed in
50 ml water containing 2ml conc.HCl. After a
week, the mixture was mashed to a soup-like
solution and was washed through a nylon
cloth. The material retained on the cloth was
oven dried for 24 hours at 103°C to 105°C and
weighed. By calculating the weight of the
seeds dissolved, the strength of the stock
solution was determined.
Powder of pads of Cactus opuntia
Cactus opuntia pads were purchased from the
nursery at Bhagur, Nasik,India. They were
stored in the refrigerator at 4°C .Pads were
initially washed with water and skin was
peeled from the pad. The outer pad was
considered the outer layer of bright green
tissue composed of chlorenchyma and the
inner pad was considered the inner layer of
7
off-white tissue composed of parenchyma.
The inner pads were then sliced into small
pieces to facilitate drying. The sliced cactus
was kept in oven at 80°C for 8 hours to dry.
The dried cactus was ground into fine powder
using mixer and subsequently sieved to sizes
53-106µm.
Powder of mucilage extracted from the
fruits of Coccinia indica
Coccinia indica ripped fruits were purchased
from the market at Nasik Road, Nasik, India,
They were collected from the market and
thoroughly washed with water, cut into small
pieces and soaked in distilled water overnight.
The mucilaginous extract was filtered through
muslin cloth. Alcohol was added to precipitate
8
the extract. The precipitate was then washed
with acetone 2-3 times and then dried by
keeping in an oven at the temperature of 40°C
for 24 hours. The filtered extract was then used
in the experiment. Alum is a most commonly
used coagulant in some rural areas of India.
The alum used in this study was reagent grade
aluminium sulphate Al2(SO4)3, 16H2O. It was
supplied by Space Laboratories Ltd, Ambad
and Nasik, India.
The various chemicals used in this study are
alum, acetone and alcohol to obtain coccinia
indica powder and Kaolin powder to obtain
turbid water samples of required turbidity.

Journal of Environmental Research And Development
They were purchased from Space Laboratories
Ltd, Ambad, and Nasik, India.
Laboratory scale sand filter
A Perspex transparent column having an
internal diameter of 50mm and length 1000mm
was used to prepare the filtration assembly.
This filtration assembly was purchased from
Space Laboratories, Ambad at Nasik by giving
the order with design specifications. The sand
and gravel of 300mm and 200mm depth were
collected from the construction worksite of
COE, Kopargaon.
In this column, the sand of 300mm depth was
supported by 200mm gravel. The sand used to
prepare the filter had the effective size (d10) of
0.45mm and (d60) size of 0.62mm, uniformity
coefficient (U.C) of 1.3555, specific gravity of
2.65 and porosity of bed as 0.445.Two 10mm
diameter flexible transparent tube were used as
piezometric tubes and were inserted at depths
of 550 mm and 700mm from the top of the
column. The supernatant from the coagulation-
flocculation-sedimentation stage was used as
an influent to the filter using peristaltic pump
at a steady flow rate of 5m/h. Prior to each
filter run the sand and gravel beds have been
cleaned.
Experimental procedure
Synthetic turbid water of high turbidity
(192NTU) was taken in 500ml capacity
beakers of 7 numbers and was used in standard
jar test apparatus. Pre-determined optimum
doses of coagulant were added and stirred
approximately 100 rpm for 1 minute. The rapid
mix stage helps to disperse the coagulant
throughout each container. At the end of rapid
mixing period slow mixing was continued at 5
to 35 rpm for 20 minutes. This slower mixing
speed helps to promote floc formation by
enhancing particle collisions which lead to
larger flocs. After slow mixing, the beaker
were carefully removed from the jar test set up
and the contents left to settle for 30 minutes.
These jar testing criteria were established from
a preliminary study. The supernatant from the
settled water was filtered through Whatman
No. 40 filter paper or through a laboratory sand
filter. Filter paper used to establish the
optimum doses of each coagulant for initial
screening studies. After determining the
optimum dose, a sand filter run was conducted
at optimum dose. Turbidity and head losses
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J. Environ. Res. Develop.
Vol. 7 No. 2, October-December 2012
were measured at intervals of 30 minutes
throughout the filter run.
To ensure a proper compaction and cleanliness
of the filter bed, clean bed head loss was
determined by Carman-Kozeny equation
modified by fair and hatch and the computed
value (1.84 cm per 5cm depth of sand) was
verified with actual clean filter bed head loss
before commencement of the filter run. To
monitor the head loss development head losses
at 5cm filter bed depth were recorded at
regular intervals and filtered water quality was
monitored. (Fig. 1).
Valve
Constant Head tank
Piezometers
300 mm depth
sand bed
200 mm deep
Gravel bed
Two ways to
collect sample
Fig. 1: Schematic diagram of laboratory scale
sand filter
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Sand filtration with Strychnos potatorum
seeds as coagulant
Fig. 2 shows the filtration characteristics of
Strychnos potatorum seeds dosed at 1.5mg/l. The
initial turbidity 14 NTU reduced to 0 NTU after
30 minutes settling. It was this supernatant that
was filtered at the flow rate of 5 m/h. Filtrate
turbidity attained a value of 5 NTU from the
beginning indicating that ripening of the filter
was quite rapid. Strychnos potatorum seed
extract is an anionic poly-electrolyte which

Journal of Environmental Research And Development
Head Loss (cm)
Filter Run (min)
Fig 2 : Filtrate turbidity and head loss for Strychnos potatorum
contains carboxyl (COO-) and hydroxyl (OH-)
as main active groups. It also contains proteins,
9,10
alkaloids, carbohydrates and lipids . The
presence of divalent cations in water can
greatly increase the ability of anionic
polyelectrolyte to aggregate negative
11
colloids . The seeds of S. potatorum also
contain strychnine which was supposed to be
9,12
responsible for the coagulating properties .
The filtrate turbidity at the beginning of the
filter run was 5 NTU and it decreased to 2
NTU after 90 minutes and remained the same
up to 150 minutes. After 150 minutes, the
filtrate turbidity started to decrease again and
attained a value of 0 NTU at 210 minutes. It
can be observed from the figure that the head
loss profile increases with filter run up to 120
minutes. This showed that most of the
flocs/particles were retained in the top 5cm
layer with no or very little penetration of flocs
in the lower layers. The profiles started to
diverge after 120 minutes indicating
deposition/penetration of flocs below a 5cm
depth which was an indication of turbidity
breakthrough.
Sand filtration with Cactus opuntia pads as
coagulant
Fig.3 shows the filtration characteristics of
Cactus opuntia pads dosed at 30mg/l. The
initial turbidity 17 NTU reduced to 6 NTU after
30 minutes settling. There was rapid ripening of
filter and the filtrate turbidity obtained a value of
6 NTU at the beginning. Previous studies have
established that mucilage in Cactus opuntia
contains carbohydrates such as L-arabinose, D-
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J. Environ. Res. Develop.
Vol. 7 No. 2, October-December 2012
Filtrate Tubiduty (NTU)
galactose, L-rhamnose, D-xylose and
13-15
galacturonic acid . Zimmerman and co
researchers recently report that galacturonic acid
is possibly the active ingredient that affords the
coagulation capability of Opuntia sapp. through
it should be noted that it only accounts for only
50% of turbidity removal. Nonethless this is still
a significant percentage and therefore, this
compound was evaluated by further on its
contribution to the overall coagulating capability.
They suggest that Opuntia Sp. Operates
predominantly through a bridging coagulation
mechanism where solution particulates do not
directly contact one another but are bound to a
polymer like material that originates from the
Cactus species. Galacturonic acid was also
reported by Japanese researchers. All these
studies point to the importance of galacturonic
acid which possibly acts as one of the major
active coagulating agents in plants. The filtrate
turbidity at the beginning of the filter run was 6
NTU and it decreased to 3 NTU after 90 minutes
and remained the same up to 150 minutes. After
120 minutes, the filtrate turbidity started to
decrease again and attained a value of of 0 NTU
at 210 minutes. It can be observed from the
figure that the head loss profile increases with
filter run up to 120 minutes. This showed that
most of the flocs/particles were retained in the
top 5cm layer with no or very little penetration of
flocs in the lower layers. The profiles started to
diverge after 120 minutes indicating
deposition/penetration of flocs below a 5cm
 J. Environ. Res. Develop.
Journal of Environmental Research And Development Vol. 7 No. 2, October-December 2012

Filtrate Tubiduty (NTU)

Head Loss (cm)

Dosage (mg/l)

Fig. 3 : Filtrate turbidity and head loss for Cactus Opuntia

depth. This is also an indication of turbidity decreased to 2 NTU after 120 minutes and
breakthrough. remained the same up to 150 minutes. After 150
Sand filtration with mucilage extracted minutes, the filtrate turbidity started to decrease
from the fruits of coccinia indica as again and attained a value of 0 NTU after 210
coagulant minutes.
16-20
Fig. 4. shows the filtration characteristics of
The Coccinia indica fruit extracts are also
Coccinia indica dosed at 0.5mg/l. The initial
turbidity 13 NTU reduced to 5 NTU after 30 anionic polyelectrolytes that destabilize
minutes settling. There was rapid ripening of particles in water by means of interparticle 21-
filter and the filtrate turbidity obtained a value bridging. Previous studies by Syed et.al
25
of 5 NTU at the beginning. The filtrate turbidity indicate that the fruit extract contains
at the beginning of the filter was 5 NTU and it alkaloids,
Filtrate Tubiduty (NTU)
Head Loss (cm)

Filter Run (min)

Fig. 4 : Filtrate turbidity and head loss for Coccinia indica

tannins, saponins, flavonoids, glycosides and
phenols. The presences of alkaloids containing
COOH- and OH-surface groups present in
Coccinia indica fruits enhance the coagulation
capability. The natural anionic polysaccharide
present in Coccinia indica mucilage is found to
be a very effective flocculent capable of
reducing turbidity from turbid water samples.
These anionic polymers present in the
mucilage make larger flocs with suspended

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Journal of Environmental Research And Development
particles in the turbid water by bridging
mechanism, finally settled them down and can
26-32
be easily removed from turbid water.
CONCLUSION
After carrying out the study the following
conclusions were made. All the three natural
coagulants are more effective for turbidity
removal and among them, Coccinia indica
proved to be more effective with less dosage of
0.5mg/l.The filtered water turbidity obtained
when Strychnos potatorum, Cactus opuntia
and Coccinia indica were used as coagulant
was approaching zero NTU for Strychnos
potatorum and one NTU in the case of Cactus
and Coccinia indica. Head loss development in
filtered bed with time was more in the case of
Strychnos potatorum in comparison with
Cactus opuntia and Coccinia indica.
The filtrate turbidity approaches the values of
0 NTU, 1 NTU and 0NTU in the case of
Strychnos potatorum., Cactus opuntia and
Coccinia indica respectively. The turbidity
value recommended by WHO for drinking
water is <5NTU.Since the turbidity values
obtained was lesser than 5 NTU, we can
conclude from this study that all the three
natural coagulants can be used efficiently for
turbid water treatment.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The authors like to acknowledge Dr.
Rajashekar Talikoti ,Professor and HOD
(Civil),Late GNSCOE, Nasik, Maharashtra and
Pofessor M. S. Purkar, HOD(Civil),SRES’
COE,Kopargaon, Maharashtra for their
invaluable suggestions, critics,encouragement
and tremendous support.
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