ENVR 269 |
| Iron(III) chloride is used as a coagulation agent in sewage treatment and drinking water production to remove water-borne pathogens and other contaminants. Although it is commonly used, the flocculation abilities of iron(III) chloride is not understood at a fundamental physics level. Understanding the underlying microphysical processes of coagulants can assist in the design of novel materials with specific activity toward emerging pathogens. To better understand the effect of iron(III) chloride on aqueous contaminants, we use the Qbeta bacteriophage as a surrogate water-borne pathogen. Small angle X-ray scattering is used to characterize the inter-Qbeta interaction between viruses over a range of trivalent iron salt concentrations. We use a novel method to extract directly from scattering data the second virial coefficient of this process, which indicates the onset of attraction. We present preliminary results of this study, which will be compared to molecular dynamic simulations. |
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Advances in Drinking Water Disinfection and Disinfection Byproduct Management
6:00 PM-8:00 PM, Wednesday, April 9, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster
Division of Environmental Chemistry |