1. Polymer Applications Understanding Polymer Activation

2. Why Polymer? Helping particles settle faster
Improving liquid/solid separation

3. Some Applications Clarifiers Primary Coagulation Plate & Frame Press
Rotary Drum Thickener
Belt Press
Drying Beds
Gravity Belt Thickener
Centrifuges
Paper Machines
Mining & Metal Processing
Paint Booths
Enhanced Oil Recovery

4. Diameter of Particle, mm Time Required to Settle
Settling Rates
Diameter of Particle, mm
Order of Size
Total Surface Area
Time Required to Settle
10.0
1.0
0.1
0.01
0.001
0.0001
Gravel
Coarse Sand
Fine Sand
Silt
Bacteria
Colloidal particles
Color particles
0.487 sq in
4.87 sq in
48.7 sq in
3.38 sq ft
33.8 sq ft
3.8 sq yd
0.7 acre
7.0 acre
0.3 sec
3.0 sec
38 sec
33 min
55 hr
230 days
6.3 yrs
63 yrs

5. Inorganic Salts Common Name Formula Equivalent weight pH at 1%
Availability
Alum
Al2(SO4) 3 * 14H2O
100
3 - 4
Lump: 17.5% Al2O3
Liquid: 8.5% Al2O3
Lime
Ca(OH) 2 40 12
Lump: as CaO
Powder : 93-95%
Slurry: 15-20%
Ferric chloride
FeCl3 * 6H2O 91
Lump: 20% Fe
Liquid: 20% Fe
Ferric sulfate
Fe2SO4 * 3H2O
51.5
Granular: 18.5% Fe
Copperas
FeSO4 * 7H2O
139
Granular: 20% Fe
Sodium aluminate
Na2Al2O4
Flake: 46% Al2O3
Liquid: 25% Al2O3

6. Inorganic Salts Advantages Low Cost Disadvantages pH dependent
Typically higher dosage and increased sludge volumes
No reduction of organic residuals
Weak flocs

7. Synthetic Organic Polymers
Advantages
Strong Stable Floc
Improved dewatering
No additional sludge volume
Effective over wide pH range
Can reduce organic molecules
Disadvantages
Slippery – safety hazard
Needs proper mixing & activation
Handling and proper application effects performance

8. Polymerization
Monomers +
Catalyst
(Initiator)
Polymer

9. Polymer Characteristics
Coagulant
Flocculant
Molecular Weight
Activity
Charge Density
Functional Group
Charge

10. Molecular Weight
Low - Coagulant
High - Flocculant

11. Polymer Characteristics
Coagulant
Flocculant
Molecular Weight
Functional Group
Activity
Charge Density
Charge

12. CH2=CH CO NH2 CH2=CH CO NH2 CH2=CH CO NH2
Polyacrylamide
CH2=CH CO
NH2 |
CH2=CH CO
NH2 |
CH2=CH CO
NH2 |

13. Charge Density + + + + + + + + + + +

14. Polymer Charges Non-ionic = no charge Anionic = negative (-) charge
Cationic = positive (+) charge

15. Form
Coagulant
Mannich
Emulsion/Dispersion
Dry

16. Forms Of Polymers Solution Polymers Primary coagulants
10% - 50% active
Low molecular weight 5K - 200K
Appearance - clear homogeneous liquid
Package - Pails, Drums, Bins, Bulk
Easy to dilute
“Neat” product easy to pump
Susceptible to Freeze
Charge - cationic, anionic

17. Forms Of Polymers MANNICH - Solution Flocculant 4- 6% active
Low molecular weight segments 5K - 200K
Appearance - clear to amber liquid
Package - Bulk
Can Freeze
“Viscous” can be hard to pump
Viscosity temperature dependent
Fumes are “unpleasant”
Charge - cationic only

18. Forms Of Polymers Emulsions/Dispersions 25 - 55% active
Appearance - white liquid
Medium to High molecular weight: 5M - 10M
Appearance - clear homogeneous liquid
Package - Pails, Drums, Bins, Bulk
“Neat” product easy to pump but!!
Needs “Activation”
Susceptible to Freeze
Will settle in “neat” form
Charge - cationic, anionic, non-ionic

19. Emulsion Polymers Oil Water Anionic, Cationic, Nonionic Flocculant
25% to 55% active
Polymer gel size 0.1 to 5 µm
Polymer

20. How Complex Is A Polymer Structure?
If MW is 10 million
350,000 molecules in a gel
One molecule has 150,000 monomers
2.5 microns = ”

21. Emulsions/Dispersions
They separate in storage!
Separated Oil Layer
Emulsion Polymer
Settled Out Polymer

22. Forms Of Polymers Dry Polymers 90% - 95% active
All molecular weights to 20M+
Appearance - powder, pellets, granules, beads
Package - bags, bulk bags
Must be wetted
Dusting is safety concern
Shelf life in years
Charge - cationic, anionic, non-ionic

23. Polymers (Polyelectroylytes)
How they work
How we characterize them
How to make them work

24. Coagulation

25. Coagulation
Charge Neutralization
Double Layer Compression
Enmeshment

26. Coagulation - +
Charge Neutralization - +

27. Charge Neutralization
Stable
Colloidal
Particle
Destabilized
Coagulant
Added with
Mixing

28. Coagulation & Flocculation

29. Flocculation
Bridging

30. Overfeed & Restabilization

31. Methods Of Preparation / Activation
In-Line Activation
Batch Tank

32. Preparation / Activation
Moment Of Initial Wetting
Agglomeration / Fragility
Rate Of Hydration
Charge Site Exposure

33. Rate Of Hydration (The Science)
With good dispersion at Moment of Initial Wetting
a 1 micron radii polymer particle can fully hydrate in 1 minute
To understand the impact of the rate of hydration, let’s look at an example. If we do a great job initially mixing polymer and water, we’ll exclusively generate tiny particles, say 1 micron is size. These particles will fully hydrate (or uncoil) in one minute. It turns out that hydration is a function of the square of the particle diameter. Pictured here the polymer uncoils and exposes all it’s charge sites quickly and efficiently.
swells ~ 6-7 times

34. Rate Of Hydration (Reality)
Without good dispersion
agglomerations are formed
10 micron agglomeration will fully hydrate
in ___ min(s)
Let’s suppose however that we don’t have perfect mixing And we generate some 10 micron particles. I’m not referring to fisheyes, an agglomeration that you can see is 1,000 times larger than 10 microns. How long do you think it will take to fully hydrate a 10 micron particle?
Would you say 10 minutes? (pause), Well it’s actually 100 minutes, remember it’s a function of the square of the particle diameter. That’s almost two hours!
So it’s imperative to avoid forming agglomerations. Your polymer will still work You’ll just be leaving a lot of polymer undissolved and ineffective.

35. Rate Of Hydration (Attempt to Correct)
Without good dispersion
agglomerations are formed
10 micron agglomeration will fully hydrate
in 100 min(s)
Let’s suppose however that we don’t have perfect mixing And we generate some 10 micron particles. I’m not referring to fisheyes, an agglomeration that you can see is 1,000 times larger than 10 microns. How long do you think it will take to fully hydrate a 10 micron particle?
Would you say 10 minutes? (pause), Well it’s actually 100 minutes, remember it’s a function of the square of the particle diameter. That’s almost two hours!
So it’s imperative to avoid forming agglomerations. Your polymer will still work You’ll just be leaving a lot of polymer undissolved and ineffective.
Time increases by the square of the increase in the radius (10 squared)

36. The “Art” of Aging
Aging is a Solution to a Problem – It is not a method or the goal of polymer activation
Aging is always required of all improperly mixed polymer solutions
Aging is an attempt to gain total polymer activation
Too much aging is detrimental to a properly mixed polymer

37. Effective Polymer Preparation
The most important factor determining the proper activation of polymer is proper application of energy.
The energy needs to be adjustable to suit the polymer selection and process application.

38. Characteristics of Polymer Dissolution
Fragility
Agglomeration
In the graph pictured here, the x-axis is time, and the y-axis is relative degree of two phenomena - agglomeration and fragility. At time zero, when polymer first comes into contact with water, there’s a greater tendency to form agglomerations (balls of undissolved polymer). As polymer and water continue to be vigorously mixed the agglomerations decrease, and you form a homogeneous solution. Unfortunately, there’s a negative effect to continuing to vigorously mix the solution. As the polymer chains begin to uncoil, they become increasingly susceptible to shear. And if you shear the polymer molecules, you decrease viscosity, and loose effectiveness in the bridging / flocculation process.
Dry and emulsion polymers have a great affinity for water. When polymer particles first come in contact with water they absorb 300 times their mass in water, swelling 6 to 7 times their original size. If you don’t properly disperse polymer at the moment of initial wetting, polymer particles will form an exterior gelatinous layer that acts as a barrier to keep water from penetrating the unactivated polymer that's trapped inside. Other terms for agglomerations you've probably heard are "fisheyes", "goobers", and "snotballs“ whatever they’re called, they represent wasted polymer and a $2.50 to $4.00 a pound for emulsion or dry polymers, that inefficiency can be costly.
time

39. Polymer Backbone – Carbon-Carbon Bonds

40. Proper application of energy is critical
How Fragile is It?
One gram of free falling water will rupture
1 million carbon-carbon bonds.
Proper application of energy is critical

41. Uniformity Of Mixing Energy60 10 3 1 5

42. Uniform Energy

43. Uniform Energy
As the tank is made smaller the energy becomes uniform

44. Characteristics of Polymer Dissolution
Fragility
Agglomeration
time

45. Mixing Zones
Conventional Mixing 1
3000

46. Staged Energy
A uniform but decreasing energy dissipation can be created with various mixing zones.
Zone 3
Zone 2
Zone 1

47. ProMinent Mixing Chamber Energy Profile
Zone 1
Fragility
Zone 2
Zone 3
Agglomeration
time

48. Right Energy / Right Time
NOT ENOUGH
Agglomerations
Waste Polymer
Decreased Performance
TOO MUCH
Damage The Chain
Decreased Performance

49. Mixing, Mixing, Mixing Good Mixing = Better Control = Optimization
= Chemical Savings 22

50. Charge Site Exposure -

51. Polymer Activation Factors
High TDS makeup water
Low temperature makeup water
High molecular weight polymer
Low charge density
High or low surfactant
With anionics, low pH and/or high hardness (ideal 7-9)
With cationics, high pH makeup water (ideal 6-8)
Chlorine levels

52. Other Factors Influencing Optimization
Discharge Piping
Minimize Fluid Velocity
Eliminate High Shear Pumping Systems
Multiple Points Of Injection
Evaluate System Piping Downstream Of Polymer Injection
Determine Optimal Feed Concentrations 3

53. Conclusions Survey your system needs for improvement
Evaluate costs for improvement vs. savings as result of the improvement
Be aware of new technologies & strategies that will help you be more efficient 8

54. Sizing ProMix S-Series
Fill in the values
Value A ______ Desired polymer feed rate in PPM
Value B ______ Gallons per hour of water to be treated
Value C ______ Desired % solution of polymer feed solution
Value D ______ Weight per gallon of “neat” chemical
Value A
Value B
lbs per hour
of “neat” product X =
120
1000
lbs per hour of “neat” product
gallons per hour
of “neat” product =
Value D

55. Sizing ProMix S-Series
Take the value of gallons per hour of “neat” polymer product and match within the ranges in table TWO
Pump # Ranges
0.15
0.3
0.7
1.0
3.0
0-0.15
0-0.3
0-0.79
0-1.5
0-3.5
Model # -----ProMix S
_________
Table one #
Table two # -

56. Sizing ProMix S-Series
Determine the volume of dilution water required
Gallons per hour of neat product
________________________
Value C
GPH of dilution
water required
X =

57. Sizing ProMix S-Series
Select the next highest number in table ONE for dilution water in GPH
Water in GPH Table One 30 60
120
240
300
600 30
60x2
60x2 or 120x2
120x2
300x2
Model # -----ProMix S
_________
Table one #
_________
Table two # -

58. Sizing ProMix S-Series
Yes folks it’s that easy to pick generic sized unit
120x2 1
Model # -----ProMix S
_________
Table one #
Table two # -