Efficiency of Backwashing in Removing Solids from Sand Media Filters for Drip Irrigation Systems

Sand media filters are especially recommended to prevent emitter clogging with loaded irrigation waters, but their performances rely on backwashing. Despite backwashing being a basic procedure needed to restore the initial filtration capacity, there is a lack of information about the solid removal efficiency along the media bed depth. An experimental filter with a 200 mm silica sand bed height was used to assess the effect of two operation velocities (30/45 and 60/75 (filtration/backwashing) m h−1) and two clogging particles (inorganic sand dust and organic from a reclaimed effluent) on the efficiency of backwashing for removing the total suspended solids retained in different media bed slices. The average solid removal backwashing efficiency was greater with organic particles (78%) than with inorganic ones (64%), reaching its maximum at a 5–15 mm bed depth. A higher operation velocity increased the solid removal efficiency by 16%, using organic particles, but no significant differences were observed with inorganic particles. The removal efficiencies across the media bed were more uniform with organic particles (63–89%) than with inorganic (40–85%), which makes it not advisable to reduce the media height when reclaimed effluents are used. This study may contribute to future improvements in sand media filter design and management.