Subject:
Recommended
Change to Polymer Mix Time – Improved Performance with 2–3 Hour Hydration
Livestock Water Recycling has recently completed a
series of internal polymer optimization trials across multiple product lines.
The results showed a clear and consistent improvement in overall system
performance when extending the polymer solution mix time beyond the current
standard of 60 minutes.
Summary of Findings
Testing compared standard 60-minute polymer aging to
extended mix times of 2 hours and 3 hours. Key
performance metrics evaluated included:
Liquid
recovery
Total
Suspended Solids (TSS) removal efficiency
Floc
structure and durability
Required
polymer dosing rates
Results
2-Hour
Mix Time:
Switching from 60 minutes to 2 hours of polymer hydration
produced significant improvements in all measured performance indicators.
Clients can expect noticeably better floc formation, higher liquid
recovery, and reduced solids carryover. Most importantly, improved polymer
activation resulted in lower required dosing, offering both
performance and cost benefits.
3-Hour
Mix Time:
Further extending polymer mix time from 2 hours to 3 hours generated additional
but smaller incremental gains. These included slightly tighter floc
structure and marginally improved filtrate clarity. While the jump from
2→3 hours is less pronounced than 1→2 hours, the improvement remains
measurable, particularly on high-load or variable-quality feedstocks.
|
Results table
|
|
Metric
|
60min (Baseline)
|
2hr Mix Time
|
3hr Mix Time
|
|
TSS Removal Efficiency
|
Baseline
|
+ 15-25%
|
+ 18-30%
|
|
Liquid Recovery
|
Baseline
|
+ 8-15%
|
+ 10-18%
|
|
Polymer Dose Required
|
Baseline
|
- 10-20%
|
- 15-25%
|
|
Floc Quality / Stability
|
Baseline
|
Significant Improvement
|
No measurable difference over 2hrs.
|
Internal
testing showed that increasing polymer hydration time from 60 minutes to 2
hours resulted in an average 15–25% improvement in TSS removal with
keeping the dose steady and a 10–20% reduction in polymer dose if
keeping TSS recovery steady. Extending mix time further to 3 hours produced
additional incremental gains, particularly in solids capture consistency, with
total observed dose reductions of up to 25% compared to baseline
operation.
Recommendation
Effective immediately, LWR recommends the following
standard for all sites:
This change ensures more complete polymer activation
and offers the best balance of performance, system reliability, and chemical
efficiency.
Operational Notes
No
changes to current polymer concentration are required.
Existing
mixing equipment and tank configurations:
Manual makedown systems are adequate for extended aging.
Polyfast Systems MAY be adequate for extended aging
depending on flow rate and polymer dosing.
Operators
should ensure that polymer is mixed well before peak loading times to
maintain consistent supply of fully activated solution.
Systems
using automated batching should update timers to reflect the new
recommended aging period.
Support
If you have any questions or would like support
adjusting your polymer mixing schedule, please contact:
LWR Technical Services & Support
Email: paul.wilson@livestockwaterrecycling.com
Phone: 403-297-0937
We appreciate your cooperation in implementing this
change and expect it to deliver improved performance and reduced operating
costs across all systems.