T-FLOC™ FLOCULATION TUBE

THEORY OF OPERATION

Tube Flocculator is a unit operation used in WTP and WWTP. The tube flocculator is a plug flow reactor in which processes such as coagulation, flocculator, demulsification, precipitation and pH control can take place under highly controlled and well defined conditions. The mixing action in the floc tube is achieved in the turns, constrictions, and expansions. The restriction and expansion of pipe size causes additional turbulence and numerous eddies in the flow pattern. These eddies, when combined with the changes in flow direction at the elbows, disrupt the velocity gradient and flow patterns, providing significant radial mixing as well as axial back mixing. In addition, some radial and axial mixing is achieved in the straight sections due to the turbulence of the fluid in the pipe. NanoWater T-Floc™  tubes are sized so that flow in the straight sections is well into the turbulent flow regime (NRe>50,000)

APPLICATIONS

T-FLOC™ Tubes are used for a variety of applications where chemicals are mixed with waste streams to facilitate coagulation and `flocculation prior to a separation process:

  • Dissolved Air Flotations (DAF)
  • Belt Filter PressFine Screening
  • Gravity Belt Thickeners

MATERIALS OF CONSTRUCTION

T-FLOC™ can be constructed of:

  • HDPE
  • PVC / CPVC
  • SS304 / SS316
  • FRP
  • SS304 / SS316/ Duplex SS

T-FLOC™ MODELS

The table below lists the recommended flow ranges and dimensions of standard floc tubes. Alternate configurations can be designed if needed.

Models TF-430 and smaller use Schedule 80 PVC pipe, while larger models use Schedule 40 PVC pipe. Floc tubes for higher temperature flows can be constructed with CPVC piping. Standard frames are constructed from galvanized carbon steel and may be provided in stainless steel if desired. The units come with a standard of three injector ports complete with check valves and shut-off valves. The units can be customized with additional injector and sampling ports and various orientations.

Unlike conventional tanks and mixers, the pipe flocculator uses kinetic energy from the wastewater flow to mix the chemistry inline. Since sufficient mixing energy is required, each pipe flocculator operates at a specific flow range. Pipe flocculators can reduce chemical usage due to the high mixing efficiency, and increase the ease of chemical optimization due to the short residence time and various sample valves.   The pipe flocculator combines mixing zones, chemical injection ports, sampling ports, pH sensor fittings, aeration ports, and flocculation zones all into one compact unit. The material of construction is HDPE and provides resistance against corrosion and abrasion. It is manufactured using external welds to ensure that the interior surface is completely smooth and does not disturb the fluid velocity profile.

Model

Pipe Diameter

GPM

M3/HR

L

W

H

Straights

Returns

Min

Max

Min

Max

ft

m

ft

m

ft

m

TF-215

2″

1 1/2″

20

50

5

11

7′ 2″

2.2

2′ 6″

0.8

3′ 4″

1.0

TF-320

3″

2″

40

110

9

25

7′ 5″

2.3

3′ 0″

0.9

3′ 11″

1.2

TF-430

4″

3″

90

200

20

45

9′ 8″

2.9

2′ 6″

0.8

5′ 3″

1.6

TF-640

6″

4″

160

450

36

102

14′ 8″

4.5

3′ 0″

0.9

6′ 10″

2.1

TF-860

8″

6″

300

850

68

193

17′ 8″

5.4

4′ 0″

1.2

8′ 2″

2.5

TF-1080

10″

8″

600

1300

136

295

20′ 8″

6.3

5′ 0″

1.5

9′ 7″

2.9

TF-1210

12″

10″

900

2000

204

454

23′ 8″

7.2

6′ 0″

1.8

10′ 11″

3.3