USE OF TIGERNUT AS A COAGULANT IN WATER TREATMENT
Abstract
Water treatment is essential for ensuring safe and clean drinking water, with coagulation
playing a crucial role in removing suspended particles and impurities. Traditional chemical
coagulants, such as alum, are widely used but may have environmental and health concerns.
This study investigates the potential of tiger nut extract as a natural coagulant in water
treatment, analyzing its chemical composition, coagulation efficiency, and performance
compared to alum. The research aims to explore a sustainable and locally available
alternative for water purification. The study involved laboratory experiments to determine the coagulation efficiency of tiger nut extract. The chemical composition of tiger nut was
analyzed to identify key coagulating agents such as silicon, aluminum, ferrous ions, and
calcium oxide. Coagulation tests were performed using raw water samples, with treatments including 100% tiger nut extract, 100% alum solution, and a 50% alum + 50% tiger nut mixture. Key water quality parameters such as turbidity, pH, total suspended solids (TSS), and temperature were measured before and after treatment to assess the effectiveness of each coagulant. Results showed that 100% alum had the highest coagulation efficiency,
significantly reducing turbidity (from 36.83 mg/l to 2.40 mg/l) and total suspended solids.
Tiger nut extract demonstrated moderate coagulation ability, reducing turbidity to 14.89 mg/l but increasing TSS due to its organic content. The combined solution of 50% alum + 50% tiger nut exhibited improved performance over pure tiger nut extract, reducing turbidity to 5.71 mg/l while maintaining a more balanced pH (4.61) compared to pure alum (4.30).
Additionally, tiger nut extract had a noticeable influence on water temperature, with a
greater cooling effect than alum. Based on these findings, tiger nut extract has potential as a natural coagulant, but it is less effective than alum in particle removal. To enhance its
effectiveness, it is recommended to combine tiger nut extract with other filtration materials to improve turbidity reduction. Further research should focus on identifying the specific active
components responsible for coagulation and evaluating its efficiency in treating industrial
and highly polluted wastewater.
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