View source for Chemistry:Dewatering

{{Short description|Removal of water from solid material or soil}}
[[File:Baldhill_Dam_maintenance_(9578945888).jpg|thumb|Pumps being used to dewater a spillway at Baldhill Dam]]
'''Dewatering''' {{IPAc-en|d|iː|ˈ|w|ɔː|t|ər|ɪ|ŋ}} is the removal of [[Chemistry:Water|water]] from a location. This may be done by wet classification, centrifugation, [[Chemistry:Filtration|filtration]], or similar solid-liquid [[Chemistry:Separation process|separation process]]es, such as removal of residual liquid from a [[Chemistry:Filter cake|filter cake]] by a [[Chemistry:Filter press|filter press]] as part of various industrial processes.<ref>{{cite journal | doi=10.1680/jenge.19.00214 | title=Characterising sediment physical property variability for bench-scale dewatering purposes | year=2020 | last1=Alimohammadi | first1=Masoumeh | last2=Tackley | first2=Hayden | last3=Holmes | first3=Baillie | last4=Davidson | first4=Kirklyn | last5=Lake | first5=Craig B. | last6=Spooner | first6=Ian S. | last7=Jamieson | first7=Rob C. | last8=Walker | first8=Tony R. | journal=Environmental Geotechnics | pages=1–9 | s2cid=225315568 }}</ref>

Construction dewatering, unwatering, or water control are common terms used to describe removal or draining groundwater or surface water from a [[Earth:Stream bed|riverbed]], construction site, [[Engineering:Deep foundation|caisson]], or [[Engineering:Shaft mining|mine shaft]], by pumping or evaporation. On a construction site, this dewatering may be implemented before subsurface excavation for foundations, shoring, or cellar space to lower the [[Earth:Water table|water table]]. This frequently involves the use of submersible "dewatering" [[Engineering:Pump|pump]]s, centrifugal ("trash") pumps, eductors, or application of [[Physics:Vacuum|vacuum]] to well points. The international business research company Visiongain valued the global dewatering pump market at $6.4 billion in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.visiongain.com/global-dewatering-pump-market-to-be-valued-at-6-4-billion-in-2018-reports-visiongain/|title="Global Dewatering Pump Market to be valued at $6.4 billion in 2018" reports Visiongain|date=2019-09-05|website=Visiongain|language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-05}}</ref>

==Processes==
=== Deep wells ===
[[File:Checking_the_Deep_Well_(8361572422).jpg|thumb|A deep well used to dewater [[Earth:Lock (water navigation)|locks]] at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan]]
[[File:FEMA_-_15793_-_Photograph_by_Marvin_Nauman_taken_on_09-16-2005_in_Louisiana.jpg|thumb|Dewatering in New Orleans following flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina]]
A deep well typically consists of a borehole fitted with a slotted liner and an electric submersible pump. As water is pumped from a deep well, a [[Physics:Hydraulic gradient|hydraulic gradient]] is formed and water flows into the well forming a [[Earth:Cone of depression|cone of depression]] around the well in which there is little or no water remaining in the pore spaces of the surrounding soil. Deep wells work best in soils with a permeability of k&nbsp;=&nbsp;{{10^|-3}}&nbsp;m/s to {{10^|-5}}&nbsp;m/s; the amount of [[Earth:Drawdown (hydrology)|drawdown]] that a well can achieve is limited only by the size of the fish pump.<ref>CIRIA515 Groundwater control&nbsp;– design and practice. Spon. London. 2000.</ref>

Deep wells can be installed in a ring around an excavation to lower the water level and maintain a safe, dry site. Several equations can be used to design deep well dewatering systems, however many of these are based on empirical data and occasionally fail. Practice and experience, along with a firm understanding of the underlying principles of dewatering, are the best tools for designing a successful system.<ref>The design of groundwater control systems using the observational method. TOL Roberts and M Preene. Geotechnique 44, No. 4, 727–34, December 1994.</ref> Some dewatering situations "are so common that they can be designed almost by rule of thumb".<ref>On the analysis of dewatering systems. JK White. Proceedings of the Xth International Conference of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, June 1981.</ref>

[[Earth:Water well|Deep wells]] are also used for [[Earth:Aquifer test|aquifer test]]ing and for groundwater drainage by wells.<ref>ILRI, 2000, ''Subsurface drainage by (tube)wells: Well spacing equations for fully and partially penetrating wells in uniform or layered aquifers with or without anisotropy and entrance resistance'', 9 pp. Principles used in the "WellDrain" model. International Institute for Land Reclamation and Improvement (ILRI), Wageningen, The Netherlands. On line:  [http://www.waterlog.info/pdf/wellspac.pdf] . Free download "WellDrain" software from web page : [http://www.waterlog.info/software.htm], or from : [http://www.waterlog.info/weldrain.htm]</ref>

=== Wellpoints ===
[[File:Cofferdam_Olmsted_Locks_Ohio_River.jpg|thumb|A [[Engineering:Cofferdam|cofferdam]] created to allow for dewatering of an area]]
Wellpoints are small-diameter (about 50&nbsp;mm) tubes with slots near the bottom that are inserted into the ground from which water is drawn by a vacuum generated by a dewatering pump. Wellpoints are typically installed at close centers in a line along or around the edge of an excavation. As a vacuum is limited to 0 bar, the height to which water can be drawn is limited to about 6 meters (in practice).<ref>The adaptable wellpoint. JK White. Water Services, May 1982.</ref> Wellpoints can be installed in stages, with the first reducing the water level by up to five meters, and a second stage, installed at a lower level, lowering it further. The water trickling between the deep wells may be collected by a single row of well point at the toe. This method ensures a much thicker width free from seepage forces.

Wellpoint spears are generally used to draw out groundwater in sandy soil conditions and are not as effective in clay or rock conditions. Open pumps are sometimes employed instead of spears if the ground conditions contain significant clay or rock content.<ref>Civil Assist Australia. 2014. Complete Water Table Management. [ONLINE] Available at: http://civilassistaustralia.com.au/service/ground-water-control/ {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402133254/http://civilassistaustralia.com.au/service/ground-water-control/ |date=2 April 2015 }}. [Accessed 03 March 15]</ref>

=== Horizontal drainage ===
[[File:Miratorg-Concordia_(06).jpg|thumb|Dewatering of [[Engineering:Sludge|sludge]] in a wastewater treatment plant]]
The installation of horizontal dewatering systems is relatively easy.<ref>ILRI, 2000, ''The energy balance of groundwater flow applied to sububsurface drainage by pipes or ditches in anisotropic soils with entrance resistance: drain spacing equations.'', 18 pp. Principles used in the "EnDrain" model. International Institute for Land Reclamation and Improvement (ILRI), Wageningen, The Netherlands. On line:  [http://www.waterlog.info/pdf/enerart.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219221547/http://waterlog.info/pdf/enerart.pdf |date=19 February 2009 }} . Free download of "EnDrain" software from web page : [https://www.waterlog.info/software.htm], or from : [http://www.waterlog.info/endrain.htm]</ref> A trencher installs an unperforated pipe followed by a synthetic or organic wrapped perforated pipe. The drain length is determined by the drain diameter, soilconditions and the water table. In general drain lengths of 50 meters is common. After installation of the drainpipe a pump is connected to the drain. After the water table has been lowered, the intended construction can start. After the construction is finished the pumps are stopped, and the water table will rise again. Installation depths up to 6 meters are common.

== Control of pore pressures ==

Whilst engineers can use dewatering to lower a groundwater table, or to drain soils, they can also use the process to control pore pressure in soils and avoid damage to structures by base heave. High pore pressures occur in soils composed of fine silts or clays. Since these soils have a very low [[Earth:Permeability (earth sciences)|permeability]], dewatering in a traditional sense (gravity flow into an abstraction well) may prove very costly or even futile. Instead, a [[Physics:Vacuum|vacuum]]-assisted dewatering scheme, such as ejector wells, or vacuum-sealed [[Earth:Water well|deep wells]] may serve to draw water into a well for abstraction.<ref>
{{cite journal
| last        = Roberts
| first       = T.O.L. |author2=Roscoe, H. |author3=Powrie, W. |author4=Butcher, D.J.E.
| year        = 2007
| title       = Controlling clay pore pressures for cut-and-cover tunneling
| journal     =  Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Geotechnical Engineering
| volume      = 160
| issue       = 4
| pages       = 227–236
| issn        = 1353-2618
| doi         = 10.1680/geng.2007.160.4.227
}}
</ref>

== Applications ==

=== Construction ===
Dewatering is often a critical component of construction projects. Dewatering of a site improves safety by preventing the formation of mud and eliminating hazards to electrical equipment posed by water. Removing water also improves the stability of soils and mitigates erosion.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ruiz |first=Angelina |date=2020-12-29 |title=Dewatering and Discharge Challenges in Construction Projects and Solutions |url=https://wasteadvantagemag.com/dewatering-and-discharge-challenges-in-construction-projects-and-solutions/ |access-date=2022-09-24 |website=Waste Advantage Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Wastewater treatment ===
In [[Earth:Wastewater treatment|wastewater treatment]], dewatering may be used to remove solids during the treatment process for separate disposal. This may take the form of thickening, where only some of the water is removed, or full dewatering.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks |date=March 29, 2019 |title=Design Guidelines for Sewage Works: Sludge thickening and dewatering |url=https://www.ontario.ca/document/design-guidelines-sewage-works/sludge-thickening-and-dewatering |access-date=2022-09-24 |website=www.ontario.ca}}</ref>

== See also ==
*[[Engineering:Geotechnical engineering|Geotechnical engineering]]
*[[Earth:Watertable control|Watertable control]]
*[[Engineering:Mine dewatering|Mine dewatering]]

== References ==
<references/>

== Further reading ==
*{{cite book |first=Wilfried |last=Erdmann |author2=Emanuel Romańczyk |chapter=International State of the Art and Tendencies in the Fields of Thickening and Dewatering |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HvbJbpLeHCEC&pg=PA89 |editor=Wieslaw Blaschke |year=1995 |title=New Trends in Coal Preparation Technologies and Equipment |publisher=Gordon and Breach Publishers |pages=89–93 |isbn=978-2-88449-139-6 |oclc=60279792 |access-date=15 May 2009}}
*{{cite book |first=J. Patrick |last=Powers |title=Construction dewatering: new methods and applications |publisher={{wipe|John Wiley & Sons}} |location={{wipe|New York City}} |year=1992 |isbn=0-471-60185-3 |oclc=24502054 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=czOTcc_PmeMC |access-date=15 May 2009}}
*{{cite book |first=Frank R. |last=Spellman |title=Dewatering Biosolids |publisher=CRC Press |location=Boca Raton, Florida |year=1997 |isbn=1-56676-483-1 |oclc=36556585 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HN6SDSm2Nh8C |access-date=15 May 2009}}
*{{cite book |first=Ladislav |last=Svarovsky |year=2000 |title=Solid-liquid separation |publisher=Butterworth-Heinemann |location=Oxford |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=4AsQitHOmCAC&pg=PA3 3] |isbn=0-7506-4568-7 |oclc=45103009}}
*{{cite book |first=I. S. |last=Turovskiĭ |author2=P.K. Mathai |chapter=Dewatering |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DwMWvTki7h8C&pg=PA106 |title=Wastewater sludge processing |publisher={{wipe|John Wiley & Sons}} |location=Hoboken, New Jersey |year=2006 |pages=106–135 |isbn=0-471-70054-1 |oclc=61821712 |access-date=15 May 2009}}

{{Aquiferproperties}}

[[Category:Liquid-solid separation]]

{{Sourceattribution|Dewatering}}