Drinking water treatment using a submerged internal-circulation membrane coagulation reactor coupled with permanganate oxidation

A submerged internal circulating membrane coagulation reactor(MCR) was used to treat surface water to produce drinking water. Polyaluminum chloride(PACl) was used as coagulant,and a hydrophilic polyvinylidene fluoride(PVDF) submerged hollow fiber microfiltration membrane was employed. The influences of trans-membrane pressure(TMP), zeta potential(ZP) of the suspended particles in raw water, and KMnO_4 dosing on water flux and the removal of turbidity and organic matter were systematically investigated. Continuous bench-scale experiments showed that the permeate quality of the MCR satisfied the requirement for a centralized water supply, according to the Standards for Drinking Water Quality of China(GB 5749-2006), as evaluated by turbidity(1 NTU) and total organic carbon(TOC)(5 mg/L)measurements. Besides water flux, the removal of turbidity, TOC and dissolved organic carbon(DOC) in the raw water also increased with increasing TMP in the range of 0.01–0.05 MPa. High ZP induced by PACl, such as 5–9 mV, led to an increase in the number of fine and total particles in the MCR, and consequently caused serious membrane fouling and high permeate turbidity.However, the removal of TOC and DOC increased with increasing ZP. A slightly positive ZP, such as 1–2 mV, corresponding to charge neutralization coagulation, was favorable for membrane fouling control. Moreover, dosing with KMnO_4 could further improve the removal of turbidity and DOC, thereby mitigating membrane fouling. The results are helpful for the application of the MCR in producing drinking water and also beneficial to the research and application of other coagulation and membrane separation hybrid processes.     

Effect of in-situ formed Al hydrates through long-term aging on enhanced particle destabilization by PACl coagulation

Aging of polyaluminum chloride (PACl) coagulants could significantly influence hydrolyzed Al speciation ruling coagulation performance. The goal of this study was to investigate Al species transformation through long-term aging and its impact on coagulation performance. Two kinds of commercial coagulants (PACl-1 and PACl-2) were stored for in-situ aging tests in six months to evaluate Al species variation with time and the performance of coagulation with natural turbid waters. The results showed that CaSO₄ precipitation easily occur in a commercial PACl coagulant with time as it contains SO₄^2? and Ca²⁺. It also activates the precipitation of gibbsite Al(OH)₃ in PACl with aging. Through 180 days aging, both monomeric Al (Al_a) and polymeric Al (Al_b) substantially transform into colloidal Al (Al_c) and precipitated for both PACl coagulants. At low turbidity (10 NTU), PACl-1 has a superior turbidity reduction rate than PACl-2, while PACl-2 performs a little better turbidity reduction at high turbidity (1000 NTU) regardless of aging time. With aging time, an obvious decrease in turbidity reduction for PACl-1 coagulation is observed at low turbidity of 10 NTU, while the improvement in turbidity reduction for PACl-2 coagulation by enhanced sweep flocculation can be achieved as Al_b mostly transform into Al_c after 150 days aging. It is concluded that dominant in-situ formed Al_c after a long time hydrolysis can improve PACl coagulation efficiency in turbidity reduction by enhanced sweep flocculation, especially for low turbidity water, but the increase in preformed Al_c in PACl would worsen particle destabilization after aging.     

三种常见混凝机理为主导条件下絮体特性研究

以模拟低浊微污染水为原水,硫酸铝[Al2 (SO4)3]为混凝剂,考察了3种常见混凝机理(电性中和、吸附架桥和网捕卷扫)为主导条件下絮体的成长过程、二维边界分形维数(Dpf)和比表面积及其与混凝效果的相关性.结果表明:吸附架桥为主导机理下絮体最大增长速率S (0.951)最快,达到稳定后絮凝指数FI最大(3.7%),二维边界分形维数Dpf最大(1.587),絮体呈块状且絮体间出现孔状间隙,比表面积介于网捕卷扫和电性中和之间[网捕卷扫(83.646m2/g)>吸附架桥(98.808m2/g)>电性中和(116.046m2/g)];FI值、S及Dpf变化与浊度去除率相关性较好,其相关系数分别达0.979、0.982和0.963,同时比表面积大的絮体吸附容量大,有机物的去除率高.     

Preferential binding between intracellular organic matters and Al13 polymer to enhance coagulation performance

Coagulation is the best available method for removing intracellular organic matter (IOM), which is released from algae cells and is an important precursor to disinfection by-products in drinking water treatment. To gain insight into the best strategy to optimize IOM removal, the coagulation performance of two Al salts, i.e., aluminum chloride (AlCl₃) and polyaluminum chloride (PACl, containing 81.2% Al₁₃), was investigated to illuminate the effect of Al species distribution on IOM removal. PACl showed better removal efficiency than AlCl₃ with regard to the removal of turbidity and dissolved organic carbon (DOC), owing to the higher charge neutralization effect and greater stability of pre-formed Al₁₃ species. High pressure size exclusion chromatography analysis indicated that the superiority of PACl in DOC removal could be ascribed to the higher binding affinity between Al₁₃ polymer and the low and medium molecular weight (MW) fractions of IOM. The results of differential log-transformed absorbance at 254 and 350?nm indicated more significant formation of complexes between AlCl₃ and IOM, which benefits the removal of tryptophan-like proteins thereafter. Additionally, PACl showed more significant superiority compared to AlCl₃ in the removal of < 5?kDa and hydrophilic fractions, which are widely viewed as the most difficult to remove by coagulation. This study provides insight into the interactions between Al species and IOM, and advances the optimization of coagulation for the removal of IOM in eutrophic water.     

聚合氯化铝(PACl)混凝絮体的破碎与恢复

通过烧杯实验以及在线粒度监测考察了聚合氯化铝（PACl）混凝所生成絮体的破碎以及随后絮体的恢复情况.结果发现,絮体的破碎以及恢复情况因混凝区域的不同而呈现不同的规律.在稳定区,絮体的强度较大,不易破碎,且破碎后的絮体可进一步增长,其恢复因子高达259%;在电中和混凝区,絮体的强度最小,易于破碎,但破碎后可完全恢复;在再稳区和卷扫混凝区,絮体的强度较大,不易破碎,但破碎后不能完全恢复,其中后者的恢复因子仅为18.6％.再搅拌强度越大,对絮体的破碎及恢复程度的影响越大.对于卷扫混凝,经再搅拌破碎后而得到部分恢复的絮体,相对于未经再搅拌的絮体而言,其絮体层与水体间界面的沉降高度及平均沉降速率均较低,且在絮凝沉降区和区域沉降区,该絮体界面的瞬时沉降速率在同一絮体浓度下均较低,但在压缩沉降区,二者的瞬时沉降速率相同.     

The influence of particle size and concentration combined with pH on coagulation mechanisms

In order to evaluate the influence of particle size and particle concentration on the coagulation process, two kinds of particle suspensions, nanoparticles and microparticles,were employed to investigate the effect of particle size on coagulation mechanisms with varying coagulation parameters. Results showed that it is easier for nanoparticles to cause self-aggregation because of Brownian motion, while interception and sedimentation are the mainly physical processes affecting particle transport for microparticles, so they are more stable and disperse more easily. The particle size distribution and particle concentration had distinct influence on the coagulation mechanisms. Under neutral conditions, as the amount of coagulant increased, the coagulation mechanism for nanoparticles changed from charge neutralization to sweep flocculation and the nanoparticles became destabilized, re-stabilized and again destabilized. For microparticles, although the coagulation mechanism was the same as that of nanoparticles, the increased rate of aluminum hydroxide precipitation exceeded the adsorption of incipiently formed soluble alum species, resulting in the disappearance of the re-stabilization zone. Under acidic conditions, Brownian motion dominates for nanoparticles at low particle concentrations, while sweep flocculation is predominant at high particle concentrations. As for microparticles, charge neutralization and sweep flocculation are the mechanisms for low and high particle concentrations respectively.Under alkaline condition, although the mechanisms for both nano-and microparticles are the same, the morphology of flocs and the kinetics of floc formation are different. At low particle concentrations, nanoparticles have larger growth rate and final size of flocs, while at high particle concentrations, nanoparticles have higher fractal dimension and recovery factors.     

铝系混凝剂优势形态分析及其混凝特性

聚合氯化铝（PACl）是常用的水处理混凝剂,在应用过程中通常表现出比传统铝盐更为优异的效果.研究表明,这种优异性能主要得益于其特殊的组成,特别是高分子聚合物Al₁₃和Al₃₀独特的物化特性.Al₁₃和Al₃₀是铝离子水解过程中的中间产物,在地球科学和环境化学等领域有着重要的研究价值.于水处理而言,二者的结构和分子特性是研究者关注的重点,大量研究基于此展开,很多重要的发现为实际应用奠定了基础.基于对PACl及其组成性质的研究,本文对PACl的混凝特性及其优势形态分子的分析进行了综合阐述.     

聚合硫酸铁(PFS)混凝腐殖酸(HA)的过程中典型操作因素的影响研究

针对聚合硫酸铁（PFS）混凝-沉淀去除腐殖酸（HA）水样的过程,通过测定典型操作因素（PFS投加量、原水pH和搅拌方式）下微絮体的zeta电位、上清液的浊度、UV254、pH值及电导率和絮体沉降体积变化,探讨了这些因素对该过程的影响.结果表明：在原水pH=6.00时,PFS混凝HA的主要机制为电中和作用,搅拌方式对PFS的最佳投加范围没有明显的影响,但单一搅拌方式下HA的去除效果更好;在原水pH=8.00时,吸附络合-卷扫絮凝成为主要的混凝机制,复合搅拌方式下PFS的最佳投加量范围大于单一搅拌方式,且前者的HA去除效果更好.整体而言,几种混凝条件下PFS最佳投药量对应的微絮体zeta电位均在-12.00mV左右;原水pH=6.00时PFS混凝-沉淀去除HA的效果比原水pH=8.00时的好,且前者形成的PFS-HA沉淀絮体体积较小,但单一搅拌方式下絮体结构的重组过程并不是影响絮体体积的主要因素.复合搅拌方式中开始阶段的高强度搅拌有助于PFS组分在HA水样中的分散而有利于其电中和作用的发挥,但对PFS的水解过程影响不大.     

Effect of AlCl3 concentration on nanoparticle removal by coagulation

In recent years, engineered nanoparticles, as a new group of contaminants emerging in natural water, have been given more attention. In order to understand the behavior of nanoparticles in the conventional water treatment process, three kinds of nanoparticle suspensions, namely multi-walled carbon nanotube-humic acid (MWCNT-HA), multi-walled carbon nanotube-N,N-dimethylformamide (MWCNT-DMF) and nanoTiO₂-humic acid (TiO₂-HA) were employed to investigate their coagulation removal efficiencies with varying aluminum chloride (AlCl₃) concentrations. Results showed that nanoparticle removal rate curves had a reverse “U” shape with increasing concentration of aluminum ion (Al^3 +). More than 90% of nanoparticles could be effectively removed by an appropriate Al^3 + concentration. At higher Al^3 + concentration, nanoparticles would be restabilized. The hydrodynamic particle size of nanoparticles was found to be the crucial factor influencing the effective concentration range (ECR) of Al^3 + for nanoparticle removal. The ECR of Al^3 + followed the order MWCNT-DMF > MWCNT-HA > TiO₂-HA, which is the reverse of the nanoparticle size trend. At a given concentration, smaller nanoparticles carry more surface charges, and thus consume more coagulants for neutralization. Therefore, over-saturation occurred at relatively higher Al^3 + concentration and a wider ECR was obtained. The ECR became broader with increasing pH because of the smaller hydrodynamic particle size of nanoparticles at higher pH values. A high ionic strength of NaCl can also widen the ECR due to its strong potential to compress the electric double layer. It was concluded that it is important to adjust the dose of Al^3 + in the ECR for nanoparticle removal in water treatment.     

Removal of dispersant-stabilized carbon nanotubes by regular coagulants

Coagulation followed by sedimentation, as a conventional technique in the water treatment plant, can be the first line of defense against exposures of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to aquatic organisms and human beings, which has been rarely documented. This study investigated the removal of dispersant-stabilized CNT suspensions by poly aluminum chloride (PACl) and KAl(SO₄)₂. 12H₂O (alum), with a focus on the effects of dispersant type, coagulant type and dosage. PACl performed better than alum in the removal of tannic acid-, humic acid-, and sodium dodecyl benzenesulfonate-stabilized CNTs, but worse for polyethylene glycol octylphenyl ether (TX100)-stabilized CNTs. Neither coagulant could effectively precipitate cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide-stabilized CNTs. The removal by PACl first increased up to a plateau and then decreased with the continued increase of coagulant dosage. However, the removal rates leveled off but did not decrease after achieving their highest level with the continued addition of alum. The coagulation and flocculation of the CNT suspensions by PACl could be regulated mainly by the mechanism of adsorption charge neutralization, whereas the coagulation by alum mainly involved electrical double-layer compression.     

Preparation and characterization of organic polymer modified composite polyaluminum chloride

Compared with traditional aluminum salts, polyaluminum chloride （PACI） has better coagulation-flocculation performance in turbidity removal. However, it is still inferior to organic polymers in terms of bridging function. In order to improve the aggregating property of PACl, different composite PACl flocculants were prepared with various organic polymers. The effect of organic polymer on the distribution or Al（Ⅲ） species in composite flocculants was studied using ^27TAl NMR and Al-ferron complexation methods. The charge neutralization and surface adsorption characteristics of composite flocculants were also investigated. Jar tests were conducted to evaluate the turbidity removal efficacy of organic polymer modified composite flocculants. The study shows that cationic polymer and anionic polymer have significant influences on the coagulation-flocculation behaviors of PACl. Both cationic and anionic polymers can improve the turbidity removal performancc of PACl but the mechanisms arc much different： cationic organic polymer mainly increases the charge neutralization ability, but anionic polymer mainly enhances the bridging function.     

Groundwater arsenic removal by coagulation using ferric(III) sulfate and polyferric sulfate: A comparative and mechanistic study

Elevated arsenic (As) in groundwater poses a great threat to human health. Coagulation using mono- and poly-Fe salts is becoming one of the most cost-effective processes for groundwater As removal. However, a limitation comes from insufficient understanding of the As removal mechanism from groundwater matrices in the coagulation process, which is critical for groundwater treatment and residual solid disposal. Here, we overcame this hurdle by utilizing microscopic techniques to explore molecular As surface complexes on the freshly formed Fe flocs and compared ferric(III) sulfate (FS) and polyferric sulfate (PFS) performance, and finally provided a practical solution in As-geogenic areas. FS and PFS exhibited a similar As removal efficiency in coagulation and coagulation/filtration in a two-bucket system using 5 mg/L Ca(ClO)₂. By using the two-bucket system combining coagulation and sand filtration, 500 L of As-safe water (< 10 μg/L) was achieved during five treatment cycles by washing the sand layer after each cycle. Fe k-edge X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and As k-edge extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) analysis of the solid residue indicated that As formed a bidentate binuclear complex on ferrihydrite, with no observation of scorodite or poorly-crystalline ferric arsenate. Such a stable surface complex is beneficial for As immobilization in the solid residue, as confirmed by the achievement of much lower leachate As (0.9 μg/L–0.487 mg/L) than the US EPA regulatory limit (5 mg/L). Finally, PFS is superior to FS because of its lower dose, much lower solid residue, and lower cost for As-safe drinking water.     

Effects of fluoride on the removal of cadmium and phosphate by aluminum coagulation

This study focuses on the effects of pH and fluoride at different molar ratios of fluoride to Al (R_F:Al) on the removal of cadmium (Cd²⁺) and phosphate by Al coagulation. Fluoride at R_F:Al ≥ 3:1 inhibits the removal of Cd over wide Al dose ranges from 5 to 10 mg/L as Al. The removal of phosphate decreases significantly at high R_F:Al of 10:1 whereas at lowered R_F:Al (i.e., ≤ 6:1), an adverse effect is observed only at insufficient Al doses below 2 mg/L. Fluoride shows inhibitive effects towards the removal of Cd at pH 7 and 8 and that of phosphate at pH 6. Fluoride decreases the ζ-potential in both systems, and the decreasing extent is positively correlated to the elevated R_F:Al. The Al fluoride interactions include the formation of Al–F complexes and the adsorption of fluoride onto Al(OH)₃ precipitates, i.e., the formation of Al(OH)_nF_m. Al–F complex formation inhibits Al hydrolysis and increases residual Al levels, and a more significant increase was observed at lower pH. Al–F complexes at high R_F:Al complicate the coagulation behavior of Al towards both negative and positive ionic species. Moreover, fluoride at low R_F:Al shows little effect on Al coagulation behavior towards Cd^2 + and phosphate, and the spent defluoridation adsorbent, i.e., aluminum (Al) hydro(oxide) with adsorbed fluoride at R_F:Al of below 0.1:1, may be reclaimed as a coagulant after being dissolved.     

Disinfection byproduct precursor removal by enhanced coagulation and their distribution in chemical fractions

Raw water from the Songhua River was treated by four types of coagulants, ferric chloride(FeCl3), aluminum sulfate(Al2(SO4)3),polyaluminum chloride(PACl) and composite polyaluminum(HPAC), in order to remove dissolved organic matter(DOM). Considering the disinfection byproduct(DBP) precursor treatability, DOM was divided into five chemical fractions based on resin adsorption.Trihalomethane formation potential(THMFP) and haloacetic acid formation potential(HAAFP) were measured for each fraction. The results showed that hydrophobic acids(HoA), hydrophilic matter(HiM) and hydrophobic neutral(HoN) were the dominant fractions.Although both HoN and HoA were the main THM precursors, the contribution for THMFP changed after coagulation. Additionally,HoA and HiM were the main HAA precursors, while the contribution of HoN to HAAFP significantly increased after coagulation.HoM was more easily removed than HiM, no matter which coagulant was used, especially under enhanced coagulation conditions.DOC removal was highest for enhanced coagulation using FeCl3 while DBPFP was lowest using PACl. This could indicate that not all DOC fractions contained the precursors of DBPs. Reduction of THMFP and HAAFP by PACl under enhanced coagulation could reach51% and 59% respectively.     

Removal natural organic matter in typical south-China source water during enhanced coagulation of a with IPF-PACl

Systematic investigation on enhancing removal of natural organic matter （NOM） using inorganic polymer flocculant （IPF）, polyaluminum chloride（PACI） and polyacrylamide（PAM） was performed in a typical south-China source water. Enhanced coagulation and applying polymer flocculant-aid were compared through jar tests and pilot tests. Raw water and settled water were characterized and fractionated by resin adsorption. The results show that DOC composes major part of TOC. The DOC distribution keeps relatively stable all around the year with typical high amounts of the hydrophilic matter around 50%. The distribution between HoB, HoA and HoN varies and undergoes fluctuation with the year round. During the summer season, the HoN becomes gradually the major part in hydrophobic parts. PACI with the species being tailor-made shows little pH effect during coagulation. The enhanced coagulation dosage for PACI could be 4.5 mg/L for the typical source water. The highest TOC removal achieved 31%. To be economically, 3 mg/L dose is the optimum dosage. Although hydrophilic fractions of NOM of both treatment strategies are removed about 30%, NOM causing UV254 absorbance were well removed（about 90%）. Hydrophobic bases and acids fractions are much more removed under enhanced conditions. The hydrophilic fraction could be better removed using PAM, the polymer coagulant aid.     

Effects of pre-ozonation on organic matter removal by coagulation with IPF-PACI

Ozone plays an important role as a disinfectant and oxidant in potable water treatment practice and is increasingly being used as a pre-oxidant before coagulation. The purpose of this study is to obtain insight into the mechanisms that are operative in pre-ozonized coagulation. Effects ofpre-ozonation on organic matter removal during coagulation with IPF-PAC1 were investigated by using PDA （photometric disperse analysis）, apparent molecular weight distribution and chemical fractionation. The dynamic formation of flocs during coagulation process was detected. Changes of aquatic organic matter （AOM） structure resulted from the influence of pre-ozonation were evaluated. Results show that dosage of O3 and characteristics of AOM are two of the major factors influencing the performance of O3 on coagulation. No significant coagulation-aid effect of O3 was observed for all experiments using either A1C13 or PAC1. On the contrary, with the application of pre-ozonation, the coagulation efficiency of A1C13 was significantly deteriorated, reflected by the retardation of floc formation, and the removal decreases of turbidity, DOC, and UV254. However, if PACl was used instead of AlCl3, the adverse effects of pre-ozonation were mitigated obviously, particularly when the O3 dosage was less than 0.69 （mg O3/mg TOC）. The difference between removals of UV254, and DOC indicated that pre-ozonation greatly changed the molecular structure of AOM, but its capability of mineralization was not remarkable. Only 5% or so DOC was removed by pre-ozonation at 0.6--0.8 mg/L alone. Fractionation results showed that the organic products of pre-ozonation exhibited lower molecular weight and more hydrophilicity, which impaired the removal of DOC in the following coagulation process.     

pH modeling for maximum dissolved organic matter removal by enhanced coagulation

Correlations between raw water characteristics and pH after enhanced coagulation to maximize dissolved organic matter (DOM) removal using four typical coagulants (FeCl₃, Al₂(SO₄)₃, polyaluminum chloride (PACl) and high performance polyaluminum chloride (HPAC)) without pH control were investigated. These correlations were analyzed on the basis of the raw water quality and the chemical and physical fractionations of DOM of thirteen Chinese source waters over three seasons. It was found that the final pH after enhanced coagulation for each of the four coagulants was influenced by the content of removable DOM (i.e. hydrophobic and higher apparent molecular weight (AMW) DOM), the alkalinity and the initial pH of raw water. A set of feed-forward semi-empirical models relating the final pH after enhanced coagulation for each of the four coagulants with the raw water characteristics were developed and optimized based on correlation analysis. The established models were preliminarily validated for prediction purposes, and it was found that the deviation between the predicted data and actual data was low. This result demonstrated the potential for the application of these models in practical operation of drinking water treatment plants.     

低温条件下絮体破碎再絮凝去除水中颗粒的研究

为了了解低温条件下絮体的形成/破碎/再絮凝过程在适当条件下对絮凝去除水中颗粒物的强化效果,采用PDA2000透光率脉动检测仪对絮凝破碎再絮凝过程进行了在线监测.研究结果表明,当电中和机理占主导作用时(混凝剂投加量小于0.1 mmol·L-1),絮体破碎后能重新絮凝,絮体大小能恢复到破碎之前;而当网捕卷扫机理占主导作用时(混凝剂投加量大于0.2 mmol·L-1),絮体的恢复情况不如电中和条件,再絮凝能力降低.投加适量的腐殖酸会增加絮体破碎前后的分形维数,但过量的腐殖酸则会降低破碎前后絮体的分形维数.絮体破碎再絮凝后其分形维数比破碎前高.腐殖酸的投加量并不会明显影响絮凝和破碎后再絮凝的FI指数.电中和絮体破碎前初始絮凝时间越长破碎后沉后水浊度越低,破碎后其浊度会比破碎前显著减小.较低投量的铝盐就能使得沉后水浊度降到很低,因此可以降低混凝剂投量而达到更好的水处理效果.     

聚合铝混凝过程研究:不同形态硅酸的影响作用

研究了不同形态硅酸对聚合铝混凝过程的影响作用 .实验结果表明经预制形成的具有不同形态分布组成的硅酸与聚合铝 ,在投加后相互间发生了十分复杂的物理化学作用 ,并受溶液pH值的影响 ,从而最终决定了混凝效果 .反应过程中所生成的形态产物及其物化特征 ,很大程度上取决于聚合铝碱化度以及所投加的Si Al比 .其中碱化度越高 ,最终产物所带电荷越高 .而不同硅酸所起影响作用分别取决于聚合程度 ,在与聚合铝反应过程中表现出一定的规律性 .单体硅酸与单体铝迅速发生较强的络合作用 ,抑制了多聚水解铝阳离子的形成 .聚合硅酸则倾向于与聚合铝形态相互作用形成一定的胶状化合物 ,从而在溶液中稳定存在 .对于胶体硅酸 ,在聚合铝作用下迅速凝聚形成更大的聚集体 ,在颗粒物间架桥形成粗大的絮体 .所得结果对混凝机理的解释与复合混凝剂的发展提供了一定的参考作用     

Application of a green coagulant with PACl in efficient purification of turbid water and its mechanism study

The applications of natural polymeric flocculants due to their green feature has been recently received much more attention. In this work, the combined usages of a cationic starch-based coagulant and polyaluminum chloride (PACl) were extensively evaluated for various addition sequences in the coagulation of both raw (surface water from the Jiuxiang River) and synthetic turbid water (two kaolin suspensions with different initial turbidities). Two typical cationic starch-based coagulants with different structures (St-G and St-E) were tried. In comparison to St-G, St-E and PACl used individually as well as St-G and St-E dosed after PACl, the combination of the starch-based coagulants fed before PACl showed higher turbidity removal efficiency, which featured not only less optimal doses of both inorganic and organic coagulants but also lower residual turbidity. On the basis of a detailed analysis of the particle size and its distribution in solution supernatants before and after coagulation by two starch-based coagulants and PACl, polymeric coagulants preferentially coagulate the small-sized colloids due to their distinct long-chain structures, but PACl preferentially coagulates the medium-sized ones. Thus, the medium-sized particles that were previously formed by the starch-based coagulants would be collectively and effectively removed by the subsequent addition of PACl. The addition sequence of the inorganic and organic coagulants in their combined usage is an important factor for improvement of the turbidity removal efficiency in practice.