Treatment Efficacy of Groundwater by Electromagnetic Polarization

Due to the increased demand for water, it is essential to search for water sources to satisfy the water demand for drinking purposes. There is a continuous decrease in Tigris River water supply in Iraq for many reasons. Thus it is necessary to search for other sources. On the other hand, there are rural areas where fresh water is unavailable, so it has become necessary to treat groundwater in such areas. Groundwater can be considered for this purpose. However, most groundwater sources are not suitable before reducing hardness. In the present work, a trial to minimize hardness from the groundwater by electromagnetic polarization is made. Actual samples are taken from Samarra, Salah al-Din Governorate. Laboratory apparatus has been designed and constructed to perform the present work. The investigated parameters are; contact time (5 - 60 sec), initial hardness concentration (800 - 1800 mg/L), and magnetic flux intensity (0.5 - 1.25 Tesla). The results indicated that hardness can be reduced by electromagnetic treatment. The obtained hardness removal efficiency range is 3.25 to 35.2%. Moreover, the addition of γ-Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 gives no improvement in hardness removal.