Suitability of Using Ipetumodu Potter’s Clay for the Production of Ceramic Pot Filters
Kamar Taiwo Oladepo *
Department of Civil Engineering, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.
Sunday Oluwatosin Fajuke
Department of Civil Engineering, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.
Adedayo Samson Ojo
Department of Civil Engineering, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Ceramic filtration is one of the household water treatment methods of providing potable water to rural dwellers in developing nations. This study reports an effort to produce ceramic pot filters from locally available clay using rice husk and sawdust as the combustible materials; the fractions of the combustible material used in preparing the pots were 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% by volume. The filters were tested for flow rate and effectiveness in the removal of turbidity, suspended, dissolved and total solids. The filter that contains 20% rice husk was found to be the most efficient because of its acceptable flow rate and effluent water quality; the first-hour flow rate was 1.66 litres per second while the turbidity of the effluent was reduced from 38 NTU to 4 NTU after five hours of filtration. The efficiency of suspended solids removal ranged between 67 and 89%. The next phase of the study, which is in progress, involves the construction of a hydraulic press to facilitate the production of the filters in a sustainable manner.
Keywords: Ceramic filter, household water treatment, clay, rice husk, sawdust