AERATION AND AIR STRIPPING

Aeration and air stripping technologies are used for a variety of water treatment applications including the oxidation and removal of metals, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), volatile disinfection byproducts, and hydrogen sulfide. Air stripping is most commonly used for compliance with VOC regulations; whereas aeration is commonly used as an oxidation technology for iron and manganese removal and taste and odor control (e.g., hydrogen sulfide oxidation). Aeration is a process in which air or oxygen is transferred to water and air stripping is the process in which gas is removed from water. These treatment processes are based on the principle of Henrys Law, which is described as the tendency of a constituent to transfer from the liquid to the gas phase at equilibrium. The Henrys Law constant is the ratio of the equilibrium concentration of a particular contaminant in air to its concentration in water; therefore, the larger the constant the greater the tendency for that contaminant to volatize. There are four general categories of aeration and air stripping methods: waterfall aeration (i.e., spray aeration, cascade aeration, tray aeration, etc.), bubble aeration, mechanical aeration, and pressure aeration. The effectiveness of aeration and air stripping depends on the method selected, the Henrys law constant of the contaminant, design factors such as air-to-water ratio, flow and loading rate, available area of mass transfer, temperature, pH, and algae production/fouling of the aerator.
Gas out to atmosphere or secondary treatment Contaminant Influent Spray Packing Restrainer

Packing Material

Liquid Redistributors

Packed Column

Packing Support Air In

Blower Assembly

Treated Effluent

Typical Packed Tower (Waterfall) Aeration

Compressor

Influent

Effluent

Diffuser

Typical Diffused (Bubble) Aeration

There are a number of potential unintended consequences related to aeration and air stripping, including scale formation in downstream piping, valves, and process equipment, difficulty in maintaining oxidant/disinfectant residuals downstream of the aeration process, possible need to add disinfection sloughing off of contaminants in the distribution system, loss of physical integrity of the distribution system (leaks), colored water complaints, and biological regrowth in the system due to additional dissolved oxygen.

Aeration and air stripping remove dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) from the source water resulting in increased pH levels. Depending on the hardness of the water, the increased pH levels may form calcium carbonate scale in downstream piping, valves, and process equipment; the harder the water, the more scale is formed. If a filter system is located downstream, the scale formation can result in cementing of the filter media. To eliminate the potential of scale formation, additional treatment can be implemented to remove the hardness (softening), prevent scale formation (chemical sequestration), or reduce the pH. Aeration and air stripping can form particulate iron by oxidizing dissolved iron in the water resulting in red water. This is more evident in waters with higher iron concentrations in the water. To avoid red water complaints from customers, addition of a filtration system downstream of the aeration process can prevent the release of the particulate iron into the distribution system. Dissolved oxygen concentrations increase as a result of the aeration and air stripping process. As a result, microbial regrowth in the distribution system can occur. The increased biological activity is more prominent in older distribution systems and systems with unlined cast iron or galvanized iron pipe since these systems are more likely to show higher tuberculation, which generally consist of larger microbiological populations. In some cases, these growths may slough off and appear at the customers taps. Potential leaks in the piping are another possible consequence. Increased dissolved oxygen concentrations may increase pitting corrosion in copper plumbing, which is more susceptible in the plumbing of newer homes. Microbial activity in the distribution system may

increase with the higher dissolved oxygen concentration levels, particularly in areas with low disinfectant residuals. The increase in activity may result in microbiologically-influenced corrosion in home plumbing causing leaks. Reduction in disinfectant residuals may occur if aeration and air stripping is located downstream of the disinfectant application point. Typically the aeration process is located prior to the disinfectant addition unless the process is used to remove volatile disinfection byproducts. Approximate capital and operations and maintenance (O&M) costs are provided in Table 1.
Table 1. Approximate Costs of Aeration Design Flow (mgd) Average Flow (mgd) Capital Cost ($/gal)1 Annual O&M Cost ($/kgal)2 0.01 0.005 $10.00 $5.50 0.1 0.03 $1.50 $1.50 1.0 0.35 $0.20 $0.20 10 4.4 $0.10 $0.05

1. Costs assume packed tower aeration which represents the high end of aeration costs. Capital costs are based on $ per gallon of treatment plant capacity. For example, addition of aeration at a treatment facility with a capacity of 10,000 gpd would be expected to cost approximately $100,000 ($10.00/gal 10,000 gal = $100,000). 2. Annual O&M costs are based on $ per thousand gallons treated. For example, annual O&M costs for a system with an average daily flow of 5,000 gallons (5 kgal) would be approximately $10,000 ($5.50/kgal 5 kgal/day 365 days/year = $10,037.50).