Design of Water Treatment Plant for Aminigboko Community, Abua-Odual Local Government Area in Rivers State, Nigeria

Access to safe and suitable water is essential for public health and community development, particularly in communities where groundwater constitutes an important source of domestic water supply. This study assessed the physicochemical characteristics of groundwater from Aminigboko Community, determined its Water Quality Index (WQI), and developed a treatment-plant design based on the identified water-quality conditions using BioWIN Simulator software. Groundwater samples were subjected to physicochemical assessment involving temperature, pH, total dissolved solids (TDS), chloride, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), dissolved oxygen (DO), electrical conductivity (EC), oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) and salinity. The measured parameters were evaluated against the adopted reference standards, while the weighted arithmetic Water Quality Index method was used to determine the overall quality status of the groundwater. The study further applied engineering design principles to develop the major components of a proposed water treatment system. The results showed that the groundwater had a temperature of 27.2°C, pH of 5.33, TDS of 119 mg/L, chloride concentration of 282 mg/L, BOD of 63 mg/L, DO of 3.4 mg/L, EC of 246 µS/cm, ORP of 193 mV, and salinity of 130 mg/L. Several parameters were within or close to the adopted reference conditions, but the low pH, elevated chloride, extremely high BOD and relatively low DO indicated important water-quality concerns. The calculated WQI was 562.169, placing the groundwater in Category E, classified as unsuitable water quality. Sub-quality index analysis showed that BOD was the dominant contributor to the poor WQI, with a Qi of 1,260.0 and a weighted contribution of approximately 472.012. The proposed treatment system comprised a biological reactor, ideal clarifier and disinfection unit. The bioreactor was designed for an influent flow of 290.4 m³/day, with a volume of 2,000 m³ and a detention time of 7 days. The clarifier had a proposed surface area of 500 m², while the disinfection tank was designed with a volume of approximately 9.044 m³, using a chlorine dosage of 3 mg/L and a contact time of 45 minutes. The study concludes that the sampled groundwater is unsuitable for direct domestic consumption in its untreated condition and requires an appropriate treatment process before use. It is recommended that the proposed treatment system be subjected to detailed pilot testing and that regular physicochemical and microbiological monitoring be instituted to ensure sustained water quality and treatment efficiency.