Reduce Iron in Water: Chlorination or Filtration?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the processes of chlorination and filtration for reducing iron content in water, particularly in groundwater. Participants explore the effectiveness of chlorination alone versus the necessity of filtration in this context.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants propose that chlorination converts ferrous iron (Fe2+) to ferric iron (Fe3+), which is less soluble and can precipitate out of the water.
  • Others argue that while chlorination may change the form of iron, it does not reduce the total iron content without subsequent filtration to remove the precipitated iron.
  • A participant mentions that in their experience, chlorination alone seemed to reduce iron levels before filtration, suggesting a possible loss of iron as a precipitate during the chlorination process.
  • Another participant emphasizes that chlorination merely oxidizes Fe2+ to Fe3+ and does not itself reduce the concentration of iron in water.
  • Some participants discuss the use of green sand filters and potassium permanganate as methods for effectively removing iron and manganese from water.
  • One participant reflects on their experience with municipal water systems, noting that the geological context of the water source plays a significant role in iron content.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on whether chlorination can effectively reduce iron levels in water without filtration. There is no consensus on the effectiveness of chlorination alone, with multiple competing perspectives presented.

Contextual Notes

Participants highlight limitations related to the chemical nature of groundwater and the challenges of removing iron from water sources with high iron content. The discussion does not resolve the effectiveness of chlorination as a standalone method for iron reduction.

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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