Active treatment of water with high turbidity generated by mining activities

This study aims to propose the optimization of the process of removing turbidity from water from surface runoff from iron ore mining areas. To this end, an effluent with high turbidity, generated by ultrafine denim particles, was produced in the laboratory. In this study, the dosage of polyaluminum chloride, the influence of pH, as well as the impact of hydraulic parameters on the water clarification process were optimized. To this end, batches of tests were carried out in a jarteste, in order to optimize all phases of the process, namely: coagulation, flocculation and sedimentation. It was found that for the proposed effluent the best dosage to be adopted is 50mg/L at a pH of 8.62. After optimizing the hydraulic parameters, a satisfactory result was obtained in terms of compliance with environmental legislation established by CONAMA. Turbidity removal greater than 99% was achieved at the end of the tests, with remaining turbidity values below 40UNT in accordance with current environmental guidelines.