Reducción de la dureza del agua del laboratorio de bromatología y nutrición animal de la FCP-ESPOCH mediante adsorción con mineral aluminosilicato de la localidad de Cacha

Abstract

The aim of the research work was to evaluate the effectiveness of an aluminosilicate mineral from the Cacha in the water hardness reduction process belonging to the "Bromatology and Animal Nutrition Laboratory of the FCP-ESPOCH". The clay mineral samples obtained in the aforementioned locality were subjected to preliminary crushing and sieving processes. The mineral was then subjected to pre-treatment to eliminate carbonates, organic matter and homogenize the ions present. After pretreatment, the mineral was divided into two portions, corresponding to mesh spans <150µm and <2000µm. The mineral in its two different granulometries, in turn, was separated into three parts, each of them subjected to different acid, thermal and natural (untreated) treatments. Then, a physicochemical characterization of the laboratory water was carried out, and an initial hardness of 522.4 mg/L was determined. For each treatment, the adsorbent was applied to the water at a ratio of 0.5 g per 100 mL, respectively, with constant agitation for 2, 3 and 4 hours. The combinations of the levels of the factors granulometry, treatment and contact time, with three replicates for each treatment, resulted in 54 experimental trials. The results showed that the best treatment to reduce hardness corresponds to that of a fine clay (150<µm) thermally treated (750°C) and agitated for 4 hours, with a removal percentage of 45.89%, with which hardness was reduced to 282.67mg/L, also achieving that the water belonging to this laboratory meets each of the maximum permissible limits established in NTE INEN 1108.