Water Treatment

The ASCE Mid-Pacific Student Water Treatment Competition includes the research, design, presentation, and hands-on construction of a filter made from supplies commonly found in homes/businesses. The filter is loaded with standardized simulated wastewater to test and rank the participants from ASCE student chapters across California, China, and Canada. Students must collaborate in order to apply wastewater treatment principles and provide a solution for a real-world situation. During the competition, the project is judged on sustainability, treatment efficiency, cost, and a technical oral presentation.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What type of water will we be using and the amount per 5-gallon bucket?

• Tap water

Woven material allowed?

• Yes

The competition rules were not entirely specific about the volume of water for the wastewater buckets. The volume loss scoring says the highest volume remaining is 9 gallons and in previous years the mixture has been 4.5 gallons, is the volume of water of the wastewater mixture 4.5 gallons this year?

•  The total constituent mixture is 10 gal, so the max water that can be extracted is ~9 gal (merely an estimate, whatever the remainder after the 6 constituents are added). 

In terms of the reports and the system designs, is it okay to look at or reference past reports for ideas? or even cite previous reports?

• Yes, it is fine to look at and reference past reports for ideas, as long as you cite correctly and they are not just ripping off past years reports. 

Can we chemically treat in the 5-gal buckets that the judges provide before sending through our system, or would we need to transfer the chemicals to another container first?

•  You should transfer to your own bucket that will be your ‘chemical mixing bucket’ that will be included in your design/costs. We are not planning on reusing buckets due to contamination issues. 

Do the chemicals have to be scaled in a solution prior to chemical addition to the bucket?

• No, the chemicals do not necessarily need to be scaled prior to chemical addition. 

Can we filter the water, then add coagulant, then filter again? or do we have to pour the wastewater into our system with chemicals already in the water and then not intervene after that point?

• During loading, coagulant can be added, once filtration time starts the influent is dumped and the flow can’t be disturbed until retrieving the filtered effluent. So no. Once the mixture is poured into the designed treatment system, it can’t be disturbed. 

Can we pour through burlap first just to get the big pieces out before adding the coagulant and then pour that into our treatment system or do we have to add coagulant to the wastewater mixture as it is prepared with all the grit in it? Essentially, is any prescreening of the wastewater possible before adding coagulant prior to adding the wastewater to our system?

• No, there is no prescreening of the wastewater before adding coagulant prior to adding the wastewater to our system

My team has been trying to make the wastewater that will be used in the competition. When making the mixture, is it composed of 5 gallons of water + the ingredients? or the 4.5 gallons of water + the ingredients?

• The mixture is composed of 4.5 gallons of water and the ingredients. 

If we pre screen the wastewater by placing a porous material (separate from our filter) over the designated chemical treatment bucket as we pour our wastewater into it, will it start our filtration time? Or can we prescreen, then perform chemical treatment in the loading phase and then pour into our design to begin the filtering phase?

• Filtration time will start if and when you pour wastewater into the designated chemical treatment bucket. 

What is the purpose of requiring that every team buys extra buckets for chemical treatment when the same buckets that the wastewater is prepared in will suffice? It seems unsustainable.

• The reason we are having it this way is to avoid issues with contamination.