Evaluation of the Efficiency of the Sedimentation Unit Equipped with Baffle Plates in Removing Water Turbidity in Flood Conditions

The raw water entering the water treatment plants in Guilan province is of surface water type and due to the fact that the soil of the supplying rivers catchment area is highly erodible, in heavy rains the soils washed by runoff enter the rivers or canals and increase the turbidity of raw inflows to the plants above the allowable limits provided in the design. At this time, due to the non-responsiveness of the treatment plant to such high turbidity, the operation of the treatment plant will inevitably be shut down and cause drinking water interruption in the distribution network. In order to settle the suspended solids and reduce the turbidity of water entering the next stage of treatment (filtration), sedimentation ponds are used. Baffle plates create a slow flow and are used to reduce the sedimentation distance of the particle in the sedimentation and clarification process. In this research, the use of baffle plates or flow relief walls in sedimentation ponds in a treatment plant were analyzed using simulation with Camsul software. Results were compared to normal conditions (no baffles or walls) and the feasibility of increasing the efficiency of these ponds and finally the efficiency of existing treatment plants in real volume were investigated.