A home water treatment plant

Objective:

Build a homemade treatment plant, to check how water purification is carried out and the different types of existing methods.

Material:

  • A large transparent water bottle (1.5 liters).
  • Scissors.
  •  Active carbon for aquariums (or volcanic rock).
  •  Gross sand.
  •  Gravel.
  • Rack.
  •  Coffee paper filter.
  •  Plastic bits.
  • Dirty water

Process:

  1.  Cut the bottle separating a third of it from the mouth.
  2.  With the plug in place, make a hole in the center of it.
  3. Place the part of the bottle that has the stopper on, inverted, inside the other part of the bottle.
  4. Go introducing in the part of the inverted bottle (the one with the stopper), successively and in this order, the following elements: Coarse sand, aquarium carbon, gravel, coffee maker filter, pieces of plastic, grid and pieces of plastic.
  5. Pour dirty water on top and wait for it to seep through all the arranged elements.
  6.  Check the water that reaches the bottom of the bottle, once filtered.

A.- What elements are retained in the grid at the top?

B.- Describe how the water comes out of the lower end of the treatment plant.

C.- What mixture separation procedures does your treatment plant use?

D.- Investigate and expose what other methods exist to purify dirty water.

E.- Find out which treatment plant receives the wastewater from the area where you live and what method is used there.

F.- Where does the treated water end up in your area?

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