Water Treatment Steps
1. Direct from the Tap
o Before water comes out of your tap and into your glass to refresh you on a hot
summer day or after you've finished a sweaty workout, it goes through an elaborate
treatment and purification process to filter out chemicals and contaminants unfit for
consumption. Water from a lake, stream or river contains sticks, leaves, mud, fish and other
critters---dead or alive---and lots of nasty stuff you can't see: parasites, bacteria, viruses,
fungi.
Pre-Treatment
o Water---pumped from a river, lake or stream---is run through a screen filter to remove
sticks, leaves, trees, rocks, life, trash and other debris that will interfere with the more
intricate treatment and purification steps.
Debris Removal
o The water is then placed into holding tanks or a reservoir. Usually, these places are
kept clean to avoid introducing more contaminants into the water. Soda ash may be added to
reduce salts that create hardness. Some treatment plants add chlorine to minimize growth of
fresh organisms.
Aeration
o A water treatment machine.
Water now heads to the treatment plant where it will go through several steps before it is fit
for consumption. Water is first sprayed into the air to break the water into smaller droplets to
balance the oxygen content. This helpa alleviate bad tastes and odors by releasing trapped
gasses.
Coagulates
o Coagulates are then added to the water to help neutralize particles, which will be
removed in a later step. The water is mixed gently in a holding tank to help the particles
combine, grow and settle for easier removal.
More Filtering
o Anthracite
The water is put into sedimentation basins, so the particles will settle to the bottom. These
basins have filter beds made up of sand and anthracite (coal), which will filter out the majority
of these particles from the water. The remaining water will be almost clear by this point.
Disinfect the microbes
o More chlorine is added to kill any remaining microscopic life---bacteria and viruses.
Some treatment plants add fluoride to water to help promote dental health. The water is then
put into a tank, where it will wait to be pumped to your house.
Keep the Pipes Clean
o Calcium hydroxide lime is used to keep pipes from becoming contaminated as the
water passes through to your home. Water still contains a certain amount of salt, which can
build up in a pipe over time and cause pipes to rust and/or get clogged.
Safe to Drink
o Your water is safe to drink now. Governments may have different requirements for
how water for the public is to be treated for consumption. Water that is not for drinking---
irrigation, for example---goes through a different set of treatments before it is used.
Backwards Chart
Term Middle School High School
Disinfection After you remove all of the bigger, harmful stuff
you can see, you need to remove harmful stuff
you can’t see, like germs. Using different
methods, such as adding chemicals, water is
disinfected.
The use of chemical and/or other
means like UV radiation to kill
potentially harmful
microorganisms and pathogens in
the water.
Filtration Water flows through another material in order to
catch the smallest pieces of dirt- the material
removes the dirt from the water by allowing the
water to pass through, but not the dirt. For
example, when adults make coffee they use a
filter to catch the grounds. The water can pass
through the filter, but the grounds cannot.
The process of passing a liquid or
gas through a porous article or
mass (paper, membrane, sand,
etc.) to separate out a solution
(when some matter is dissolved
in something else).
Sedimentation As water travels through a tank, gravity causes
the clumps of dirt to fall to the bottom. The dirt is
removed from the water because the water
continues to flow, while the dirt remains at the
bottom of the tank.
As water travels through a tank,
gravity causes the clumps of dirt
to fall to the bottom. The dirt is
removed from the water because
the water continues to flow,
while the dirt remains at the
bottom of the tank.
Coagulation Alum and other chemicals are added to the water,
forming “floc,” which are tiny particles that dirt
in the water sticks to like glue. Coagulation is
important because the dirt forms into big clumps,
heavy enough to sink to the bottom.
The purpose of coagulation is to
create dirt clumps that are heavy
enough to sink, which is
important for the next step in the
process. Alum and other
chemicals are added to the water,
forming “floc”- tiny, sticky
particles. Dirt in the water sticks
to these particles, forming
clumps.