ASSESSMENTS ON THE EFFICIENCY OF ALUMINUM SULFATE AND OKRA SEED COAGULANTS FOR DRINKING WATER TREATMENT: IN THE CASE OF GAMBELLA TOWN

Abstract

The treatment of drinking water by established treatment methods in developing and underdeveloped countries is also very costly and unacceptable, due to the lack of adequate infrastructure and accessories needed and also due to the hazards caused by the chemicals used in the treatment process. The efficiency assessment of aluminum sulfate and okra seed coagulants has been tested in the following study. Using the water sample collected from the Baro River, this efficiency was checked by standard Jar Tests performed at Jimma University, Jimma Institute of Technology (JIT). The efficiency was specified by the quantity of turbidity removal, confirming the efficient turbidity removal of Okra was 98.113% at pH3 and dosage of 0.5g & Alum was 99.8% at pH3 and dosage of 1.5g ranges at a volume of 500 ml. In terms of the assessment of its operation and performance, conventional water treatment plants, particularly in developing countries, face major challenges due to inappropriate technologies, insufficient equipment and a lack of qualified expertise. Therefore, simple but efficient technologies are necessary for a reasonable evaluation of the plant's daily performance. Turbidity is considered to be a suitable replacement to provide a favorable indication of the biological and physical content of the treated water, thereby providing a fair gauge of the treatment plant's efficiency with regard to water purification by extension. In addition, it is reasonably easy to calculate, cheap and the operators can easily understand it. In this report, the efficiency of the water treatment plant in Gambella town was assessed. The research was performing by evaluating the efficiency of Aluminum sulfate & Okra seed coagulants in Gambella town. Aluminum sulfate is very expensive, and people's ability to pay for services is limited. Skills and technology are also scarce. As a result, locally available materials can be used to achieve a long-term safe water supply and suggesting effective and relevant solutions to investigate.