Comparison of the Efficacy of Two Bioflocculants in Water Treatment

The flocculating activity of mucilage and pectin extracted from cactus leaves of Opuntia Ficus Indica (OFI) was investigated. For the applications of mucilage or pectin, as bioflocculant, they showed more than 98% of the flocculating activity in Sanmix clay suspension. The presence of bivalent cations (Ca2+) did not enhance flocculating activity. The effect of mucilage on coagulation performance and floc characteristics with polyaluminum pectin was evaluated in synthetic turbid water treatment. The optimum dosage of mucilage and pectin was found to be 2~8 mL and 2~6 mL by one litre of turbid water, respectively. The optimum pH was found to be 3.0 for synthetic water.