There are several possible solutions to the removal of dissolved pollutants and attached contaminants. Physical filtration processes such as screening, hydrodynamic separation and physical filtration processes are unable to remove the dissolved pollutants, and hence media with chemical removal filtration methods have been found to do so. There are several common filtration media, all of which have their own specific chemical processes to remove a range of pollutants. We have a wide range of systems that use the below filter media, including our XTREAMPROTECTOR, ENVIROPROTECTOR and MAXIPROTECTOR.
· Zeolite – Zeolite is a microporous, aluminosilicate mineral commonly used as an adsorbent and catalytic material. Zeolite occurs naturally but is also easily manufactured on an industrial scale and is hence one of the larger adsorption materials available. Zeolites have a porous structure that can accommodate a wide variety of cations such as sodium’s, potassium’s and magnesium’s and hence are highly reactive to remove chemicals from waterways. It is also a powerful remover of:
· soluble metals
· nutrients
· organic material.
· Activated Carbon – Activated carbon is commonly used to adsorb natural organic compounds, as well as even taste and smell compounds, in water treatment processes. It is a highly effect filtration media because it is a highly porous material and provides a large surface area to adsorb contaminants. Through the adsorption process, a both physical and chemical process of accumulating a substance at the interface between liquid and solid phases, this organic filter media is able to efficiently remove oil and grease as well as organics such as PAHs and phthalates.
· Organic material
· Nutrients
· Oil and grease
· Perlite – This substance is an amorphous volcanic glass or ash that has a high-water content and is formed by the hydration of obsidian. It also has the unique of a high expansion rate when heated and when this is done the production of perlite filter aids occurs. These aids have a jagged, interlocking structure with a myriad of microscopic channels which still allow reasonable flow rates with a high total phosphorus removal ratio. It is able to adsorb dissolved-P and filtering particulate-P simultaneously due to its structure and it is able to effectively remove:
· Sedimentation and total suspended solids
· Oil and grease
· Nutrients
· Phosphorus
· Soluble Metals
· Total Phosphorus
· Activated Filter Media – Activated filter media is a filtration media that is designed as a filtration replacement for sand by oubling the performance of regular sand filters. AFM is a media that is engineered as a product of a specific glass type, processed to obtain the optimum particle size and shape, and then processed in a 3 step activation process to increase ethe surface area by up to 300 times its original size to ensure superior filtration. The AFM media also resists filter issues such as biodynamic instability, resists transient wormhole channeling and doesn’t require recharging or replacement. It also lowers backwash demand by roughly 50% as well as having a lifespan that mirrors the filter system in which it is present in.
· Biological Media – this material is considered to be anything that is inert that provides an ecosystem for particular bacteria to exist and reproduce in that are desired to break down these toxic pollutants into a less toxic form. If the media is right, specifically temperature above 13 degrees, ammonia and nitrite as food and the existence of oxygen the bio load increase and the bacteria reproduce. This bacteria breaks down the pollutants into a less toxic form and is then able to be removed and the water produced is much cleaner to be returned to the environment.
· Ion Exchange Resins – Resins are a less used filter media, and work by attracting a specific molecule to adhere to them. These resins can either be a cation and anion material and attract the ions to be removed causing the replacement of these ions with similarly charged ions of which are not considered pollutants in storm water.
In combination, these filtration media types can form an effective filtration rate and remove a large number of contaminants. If the combination of these types of filtration media occur, we have the efficient removal of:
· Sediments and Total suspended solids
· Oils and Grease
· Soluble Metals
· Organic Materials
· Nutrients
· Total Phosphorus