Mechanical Engineering Commons^™

Quantitative Understanding Of Nanoparticle Flocculation In Water Treatment, Sungmin Youn

All Engineering Faculty Research

Flocculation is critical in drinking water treatment; in flocculation, the particle size distribution changes from a large number of small particles to a small number of larger particles. Larger particles are effectively removed by settling and filtration processes that follow flocculation. In recent years, manufacturing of engineered nanoparticles has skyrocketed, and these nanoparticles can enter our water supplies, but knowledge of their fate in water treatment is limited. The objective of this research was to update knowledge of flocculation by extending previous work at the microscale to the nanoscale.

Flocculation involves transport of particles to the vicinity of one another …