Question

Loading of finer clay particles in muddy water with a piece of alum

Answer 1

Sometimes the water fetched from a river, lake or pond is muddy due to the presence of fine clay particles suspended in it. These suspended clay particles are very small and take a long time to settle down on their own. The settling down of suspended clay particles of muddy water can be made faster by the process of loading.
Loading is the process in which alum particles are deposited on suspended clay particles of muddy water to make them heavy and settle down rapidly. Muddy water is a mixture of water and suspended clay particles. The muddy water is taken in a beaker. A big piece of alum is taken and a thread is tied to it. The piece of alum is then put in the beaker of muddy water and rotated in it three or four times by holding from thread. After this piece of alum is taken out from the beaker. When the piece of alum is rotated in muddy water, some of the alum dissolves in water. The particle of dissolved alum deposit on the suspended clay particles of muddy water. In this way the suspended clay particles become loaded with heavy alum particles. Due to this the clay particles become quite heavy and settle down at the bottom of beaker quite rapidly. When all the suspended clay particles settle down, the water becomes clear. The clear water is then decanted into another beaker. The loaded clay particles remain behind in the first beaker.

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