Reduce Iron in Water: Chlorination or Filtration?

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the effectiveness of chlorination versus filtration in reducing iron content in water. Chlorination converts ferrous iron (Fe2+) to ferric iron (Fe3+), which precipitates as hydroxide, but does not remove iron from water without subsequent filtration. Participants confirm that while chlorination can lower iron levels through precipitation, filtration is essential for complete removal. The use of green sand filters is recommended for effective iron and manganese removal from groundwater.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of iron chemistry, specifically Fe2+ and Fe3+ oxidation states.
  • Knowledge of water treatment processes, including chlorination and filtration.
  • Familiarity with green sand filtration systems and potassium permanganate usage.
  • Basic principles of precipitation reactions in water treatment.
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the chemical reactions involved in chlorination of iron in water.
  • Learn about the operation and maintenance of green sand filters for iron removal.
  • Explore alternative methods for treating high iron content in groundwater.
  • Investigate the implications of iron and manganese presence in drinking water quality.
USEFUL FOR

Water treatment professionals, environmental engineers, homeowners with well water systems, and anyone involved in managing groundwater quality.

pijoe
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as i know, ferrous iron (Fe2+) will convert to ferric iron (Fe3+) if we mix water contain iron (such as groundwater) with chlorine. then the water should go through filtration process to filter the extractable iron (Fe3+). that how we can reduce the content of iron in water.

my question is...which process is reduced the iron content? chlorination or filtration? because as what i understand, the chlorination process will convert Fe2+ to Fe3+ only, the content of iron still not change. But the process that remove the iron in water is filtration.

am i right? because when i put some chlorine in water and then i tested it without go through filtration process, i figure out that the iron level in the water was already reduced, and reduce more when i filtered it. is that chlorination process can reduce level of iron in water by itself without filtration process?
 
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pijoe said:
as i know, ferrous iron (Fe2+) will convert to ferric iron (Fe3+) if we mix water contain iron (such as groundwater) with chlorine. then the water should go through filtration process to filter the extractable iron (Fe3+). that how we can reduce the content of iron in water.

my question is...which process is reduced the iron content? chlorination or filtration? because as what i understand, the chlorination process will convert Fe2+ to Fe3+ only, the content of iron still not change. But the process that remove the iron in water is filtration.

am i right? because when i put some chlorine in water and then i tested it without go through filtration process, i figure out that the iron level in the water was already reduced, and reduce more when i filtered it. is that chlorination process can reduce level of iron in water by itself without filtration process?

Fe^{3+} precipitates as hydroxide because this is much more insoluble than that of Fe^{2+}.
Fe^{3+} + 3H_2O --> Fe(OH)_3 + 3H^{+}
 
chlorination without filtration: is it works?

thank you for your reply.

but i want to know whether chlorination process can reduce the level of iron concentration in groundwater by itself or not? i mean without followed by filtration process.
 
pijoe said:
thank you for your reply.

but i want to know whether chlorination process can reduce the level of iron concentration in groundwater by itself or not? i mean without followed by filtration process.
My house sits a top a huge deposit of iron and manganese ore. We must use a green sand (potassium permanganate) filter to remove the Fe and Mn. In addition, we have to eliminate Ni and Cd (not sure of the source). Following that, we have a water sofener.

I'm not sure what one is asking. The chemical process is necessary between the well and home distribution system. One really cannot change the chemical nature of the groundwater - there is just too much water coming from an even larger volume of ground.

If one could remove the Fe from groundwater, where would it go?

The only way to get reduced Fe in water is to find a geographic location in a geological formation that does not contain Fe. I worked in a municipal water production facility, which supplied a small town of about 40,000 people. The water source was an underground acquifer that had naturally soft water (Na) and low heavy metal content.
 
pijoe said:
thank you for your reply.

but i want to know whether chlorination process can reduce the level of iron concentration in groundwater by itself or not? i mean without followed by filtration process.
No; chlorination just oxidize Fe2+ to Fe3+.
 
Last edited:
Use green sand filter. the disadvantage is that you need to generate it using potassium permanganate solution.
 
pijoe said:
am i right? because when i put some chlorine in water and then i tested it without go through filtration process, i figure out that the iron level in the water was already reduced, and reduce more when i filtered it. is that chlorination process can reduce level of iron in water by itself without filtration process?

We are on a well system where the water has a high iron content. In our chlorinated water treatment system, our primary filter is actually the reaction vessel [for the chlorine and iron] in which a good portion of the iron precipitates out of the fluid stream before the filters. Perhaps you were losing some iron as a precipitate.
 

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