WATER TREATMENT USING READILY AVAILABLE AGRICULTURAL WASTE MATERIALS

This study is aimed at treating water Using Readily Available Agricultural Waste Materials. Conventional water treatment methods have been employed over the years and have been effective in many cases, Conventional treatment processes often rely on significant infrastructure, high energy consumption, and the use of chemical additives, which can have economic and environmental implications. This study employs the use of coconut shells gotten from a local market Ukam in Mkpat Enin local government, clam and periwinkle shells from Iko, Eastern Ogbolo local government area all in Akwa Ibom state. shells were processed then sieved and results from the sieve analysis recorded that the shells passed through 13.3mm sieve and were retained in 3.25mm sieve. The treatment system was designed to have two cylindrical tanks, one acting as a reservoir and the other treatment unit with the shells arranged in layers as reactors. The reservoir supplying the treatment unit at flow rate (Q= 0.0015m3/s) and a retention time of 15min -1:30min. After analysis were carried out it was discovered that the method of treatment in this study Yield a significant reduction in Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), Total Suspended Solids (TSS), and Total Bacterial Count (TBC) of wastewater sample, which makes it suitable to be used for irrigational purposes. The pH, and total nitrogen of the wastewater Sample were already only slightly below the safe limits. Although after the treatment the values were slightly improved. Later the suspended solids decreased after the treatment with natural adsorbents and the percentage of removal efficiency was above 85% and 71%. Although the outstanding removal efficiency is obtained by using the Combination of three adsorbents. the raw water sample, which was concentrated with heavy metal After treatment, there was an effective removal of heavy metal ions from the water. Also, the agro waste materials effectively removed about 75% of Cr6+ and Pb2+. In addition, about 65% and 77% removal were determined for Cd2+ and Zn2+, respectively. The adsorption efficiency was found to be 75% for Cr6+ and Pb2+ 60 -70% for Cd2+ and Zn2+. This water treatment system can be adopted since the results analyzed after treatment show that; certain water qualities can be optimized by the use of coconut shells, clam shell and periwinkle shells being natural absorbent for the treatment of wastewater.