Abstract
The effectiveness of suspended solid (SS), total coliforms (TC), and Escherichia coli (E. coli) removal from pond waters in a rural area of Bangladesh by a filtration unit using simple ceramic filter (SCF) was investigated. The SCF was manufactured using Bangladesh local clay soil and rice bran, and the filter unit was made by attaching the SFC to a 15 l clay flower pot. Laboratory testing with artificial pond water was performed in Japan followed by a field test with actual pond water in Bangladesh. The log removal of TC and E. coli by the filtration unit in the laboratory test was 2 to 3 log or more, and in the field test, it was 1 to 2 log or more during the wet season and approximately 1.5 log during the dry season. The filter unit also had good removal efficiency for SS (primarily algae) from the raw pond water. The effect of additional devices (iron net, rice husk charcoal and immobilized rice husk charcoal) was not apparent, but the addition of an iron net decreased dissolved phosphorus (D－P). The filter unit can be applied to actual pond water and is an alternative treatment system for pond water.
