Abstract
Hardness in drinking water is undesirable, and hardness can be removed by different methods, such as the lime-soda process, reverse osmosis, ion exchange method, distillation, etc. This study attempts to develop a low-cost water filter to remove hardness with the help of various low-cost available materials. Hardness in water is generally high in groundwater; this causes scaling actions on vessels and health-related issues, such as cardiovascular disease and kidney-related matters. This paper presents the results of investigations carried on the Keelara village, Mandya borewell water on the removal of hardness employing physio-chemical adsorption processes, using locally available and low-cost materials, such as activated carbon, quartz sand, water softener (Resin beads), and bio-ceramic alkaline balls. Experiments were carried out to determine the effect and efficiency of adsorbents on factors such as adsorbent dose and contact time by the adsorption process using collected water samples. By conducting necessary investigations, it was concluded to use 50 g of activated carbon, 100 g of quartz sand, and 30 g of water softener resin beads in layers to achieve maximum efficiency. The hardness removal efficiency of the water filter used in the present study was found to be around 85–90% and the overall cost of the filter is less than Rs. 350.
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Acknowledgements
Authors thank all the staff members Department of Civil Engineering, PESCE, Mandya for their valuable suggestions who have helped directly or indirectly during this research work. In addition, a special thank for Mr. Parmananda P, Asst. Instructor, Dept., of Civil Engineering who have helped in conducting lab tests during the research work.
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MMS: methodology and idea formulation. SHJ: methodology. RHJ: data validation. CV: experiment work. UUS: experiment work.
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Madhusudhan, M.S., Surendra, H.J., Rajendra, H.J. et al. Removal of hardness using natural and synthetic water treatment system for safe and sustainable water supply in the Indian context. Sustain. Water Resour. Manag. 9, 179 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-023-00954-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-023-00954-8