{"id":53482,"date":"2023-06-07T09:23:17","date_gmt":"2023-06-07T09:23:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azud.com\/blog\/catchment-water-curiosities-and-treatments\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T11:52:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T11:52:14","slug":"catchment-water-curiosities-and-treatments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/blog\/catchment-water-curiosities-and-treatments\/","title":{"rendered":"Groundwater: Interesting Facts and Treatment Methods"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Water treatment is the process by which water is treated to make it safe and suitable for human consumption. It involves the removal or reduction of contaminants, microorganisms, and substances that may pose a health risk.<\/p>\n

When choosing the treatment processes to be carried out at a drinking water treatment plant (DWTP), the first thing we need to know is the physical, chemical, and microbiological characteristics of the collected water. This water can be surface water, groundwater, or seawater. Let\u2019s look at some key characteristics of each source:<\/p><\/div>\n

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SURFACE WATER<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Since surface water (from rivers, lakes, or reservoirs) contains higher levels of microorganisms and suspended solids than groundwater, when we use surface water to produce drinking water, we must subject it to more intensive microbiological treatment than we would if we were using groundwater.<\/p>\n

The large temperature fluctuations experienced by surface water can affect the efficiency of the treatments used to make it potable. For example, as the viscosity of water changes with temperature, the permeability of membranes to ions will vary, and with it, the quality of the resulting effluent.<\/p>\n

Compared to other sources of raw water, surface water contains higher concentrations of emerging contaminants, such as pharmaceuticals and microplastics.<\/p>\n

Since Directive 2020\/2184 limits the presence of some of these contaminants in consumption water, it is particularly water treatment plants that use surface water that must have a treatment process capable of reducing their concentration (provided they do not already comply with regulations).<\/p>\n

GROUNDWATER<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Groundwater is characterized by its low levels of suspended solids and turbidity, since it has already been filtered through the soil.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Among the physicochemical characteristics they may exhibit that influence the water treatment process, the pH and their higher content of dissolved substances are particularly noteworthy.<\/p>\n

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  • pH<\/strong>: In general, groundwater tends to be slightly acidic, with a pH below 7, as it becomes more acidic as it passes through the soil layers (which contain abundant CO2). However, this can vary depending on the geology of the area.<\/li>\n
  • Dissolved minerals<\/strong>: Groundwater often contains iron and manganese from the rocks and minerals through which it filters. Furthermore, under acidic conditions, the aluminum present in the minerals can be released more easily and thus dissolve into the water.<\/li>\n
  • Nitrates<\/strong>: Groundwater is most likely to contain nitrates, which come from agricultural and livestock activities.<\/li>\n
  • Sulfates<\/strong>: The sulfate content in groundwater stems from its continuous contact with the soil and with sulfate-rich minerals, such as gypsum or pyrite.<\/li>\n
  • Arsenic<\/strong>: The arsenic present in the rocks of certain specific geological areas causes it to leach into the groundwater.<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n
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    SEAWATER<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    We refer to the process of obtaining drinking water from seawater as desalination. Seawater is the most expensive source of water to treat into drinking water due to its high concentration of mineral salts, primarily sodium chloride; however, it is also an inexhaustible source, as it accounts for 97% of the Earth\u2019s water.<\/p><\/div>\n

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    The suspended solids content of seawater is similar to that of surface water. However, when ocean currents occur, suspended solids and water turbidity increase as particles settled on the seafloor are stirred up.<\/p>\n

    Ocean currents can also transport nutrients, such as nitrates and phosphates, which promote algal blooms. This growth can cause organoleptic changes in the water and potential blockages in the drinking water treatment plant if it is not properly equipped.<\/p>\n

    Therefore, it is essential to have an adequate prefiltration system capable of protecting the reverse osmosis membranes from both high solid loads and the presence of algae of various types and sizes.<\/p><\/div>\n

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    AZUD SOLUTIONS FOR WATER TREATMENT<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    At AZUD, we offer decentralized water treatment solutions tailored to the composition and treatment needs of the collected water.<\/p>\n

    We apply our expertise and thorough analysis of the water source to provide containerized solutions equipped with the necessary technology to treat water in a small space without the need for civil engineering work.<\/p>\n

    Their rapid manufacturing and commissioning ensure an immediate supply of drinking water in isolated municipalities or those with limited access to the centralized water system, as well as during periods of extreme drought. Additionally, we conduct a study of operating and maintenance costs to ensure that this is a competitive alternative to conventional centralized water treatment plants.<\/p><\/div>\n

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    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    When choosing the treatment processes to be carried out at a drinking water treatment plant (DWTP), the first thing we need to know is the physical, chemical, and microbiological characteristics of the collected water. This water can be surface water, groundwater, or seawater. Let\u2019s take a look at some key characteristics of each type of water source.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":53483,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[463],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-53482","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53482","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53482"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53482\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77074,"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53482\/revisions\/77074"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53483"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53482"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53482"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azud.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53482"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}