Project title: Biofiltration versus Conventional Filtration in Drinking Water
Partners: City of Ottawa
University Collaborator: Carleton University
Principal Investigator: Shawn Cleary
Co-investigator: Onita Basu, Carleton University
Funder: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)
College-University Idea to Innovation
Students: Cezzanata Andrade, Ashley Piche, and Karly Treleaven
This drinking water treatment project involved a pilot scale comparison between conventional and biological filtration to assess each processes’ performance in removing organic matter, the pre-cursor to disinfection byproducts. The filters operated under a range of temperature and backwashing conditions to assess the effect of these factors on performance.
It was a joint research project between Humber College, Carleton University, and the City of Ottawa (Brittania Water Treatment Plant), which involved students from both academic institutions collecting data and drawing conclusions from the findings that are relevant to the operation of municipal water treatment plants.
“It has been an incredible experience to work with Carleton University and the City of Ottawa on this applied research project. Dynamic partnerships provide educational institutions with the capacity to do the research we are passionate about. I look forward to continuing to grow these existing partnerships and have a positive impact on drinking water safety and environmental sustainability in Canada.”
— Shawn Cleary, Professor, School of Applied Technology
Thus far, the biofilters have performed significantly better (p<0.05) in terms of disinfection by-product reduction, where TTHM and HAA9 concentrations were lower than the conventional filters by 40% and 46%, respectively. Also, the biological filters have proved to be less vulnerable to turbidity spikes following backwashing. However, the biofilters have exhibited greater headloss development, as expected, which was mitigated when applying air scour and ETSW techniques during backwashing.
These findings are valuable to the water industry. Continued research in this area will help municipalities optimize their water filtration processes to ensure maximum treatment efficiency with minimal disinfection by-products.