The recycled washwater, which has different water quality and is produced about 5 to 20% of the total water volume treated, affects the unit operation of water treatment, especially coagulation process. However, the effects of recycled washwater on unit operation of water treatment have not been fully investigated. In this study, effects of recycled washwater on coagulation process were investigated to find the optimum coagulation condition by analyzing turbidity, UV254, TOC removal efficiencies. In addition, effects of recycled washwater on residual Al after coagulation were studied by analyzing soluble and particulate Al. The size distribution and fractal dimension of coagulated also analyzed.
The recycled washwater was lower pH than the raw water. And the recycled washwater had higher UV254, TOC and residual Al concentration than the raw water. Residual Al concentration of recycled washwater was about 50 times higher than that of raw water. Optimum coagulant dosages on the blending recycled washwater and the raw water for turbidity, UV254 and Al removal were lower than that on the raw water. However, TOC removal increased by increasing coagulant dosage. The size and fractal dimension of coagulated particle produced in the blending recycled washwater were larger, which imply faster settling velocity, than those produced in the raw water only.