Environmentally Friendly Synthesis of Ferric Chloride Coagulant from Scrap Iron for the Reduction of ion ferro and Total Dissolved Solids

Sumardiyono; Sunardi; Argoto Mahayana; Nur Hidayati; Soebiyanto; Mahardira Dewantoro; Afif Afghohani

Authors

Sumardiyono Universitas Setia Budi Author
Sunardi Universitas Setia Budi Author
Argoto Mahayana Universitas Setia Budi Author
Nur Hidayati Universitas Setia Budi Author
Soebiyanto Universitas Setia Budi Author
Mahardira Dewantoro Universitas Muhammadiyah PKU Surakarta Author
Afif Afghohani Universitas Veteran Bangun Nusantara Author

Keywords:

Coagulant, Fe²⁺, Ferric Chloride, Total Dissolved Solids, Well Water

Abstract

The decline in groundwater quality, particularly in terms of TDS and Fe²⁺ levels, is a major concern in clean water supply. This study aims to synthesize and evaluate the effectiveness of FeCl₃ coagulant synthesized from scrap iron waste from a lathe workshop in reducing Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) and Fe²⁺ levels in borehole water. FeCl₃ was synthesized by reacting scrap iron waste with a 32% HCl solution. Water samples were tested for TDS and Fe²⁺ levels before and after treatment using gravimetric and UV-Vis spectrophotometric methods. The FeCl₃ coagulant doses used were 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3%. The results showed that the 0.3% dose provided the highest effectiveness in reducing Fe²⁺ levels by 80.10%, while the reduction in TDS reached 36.05% at the same dose. All doses successfully reduced Fe²⁺ levels to below the threshold set by Ministry of Health Regulation No. 2 of 2023 (<0.2 mg/l). This study demonstrates that FeCl₃ coagulant derived from iron waste is effective and has the potential to serve as an economical and environmentally friendly alternative for water treatment.

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