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Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Appropriate technology water treatment processes for MaeLa Temporary Shelter, Thailand

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

This thesis recommends the use of horizontal-flow roughing filters to treat spring water of variable annual quality in MaeLa Temporary Shelter, Thailand. The public drinking water system for 45,000 refugees is overseen by Aide Medicale Intemacionale, with which this project was conducted. Half the drinking water for the camp is provided by thirteen springs. The volume and turbidity of these springs varies annually, correlating with the rainy and dry seasons. Treating the varying turbidity and volume at these sources so that the water can be effectively disinfected is the treatment goal. Available materials and operation and maintenance capabilities are also design parameters. Horizontal-flow roughing filtration was determined to fit these parameters and a design with two equivalent filters operating in parallel is recommended. One important feature of the filters is baffles that dictate the flow path of water through the filter. A second feature is an outflow at the top of the filter that will maintain a constant water volume in the filter. The feasibility of the design is based on flow tests and turbidity measurements taken on site as well as weekly flow rates and turbidities for 2007 provided by AMI. The requirements for mechanical regeneration of the filter are also determined.

Degree

thesis:*
Department dc:contributor.department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
Grantor dc:publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Year dc:date.issued
2008

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Vater, Katherine Ann
Advisor dc:contributor.advisor
  • Peter Shanahan.

Subjects

dc:subject × 1

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.
Language dc:language.iso
eng

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Handle dc:identifier.uri
http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/43875
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/43875

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
MIT
Base URL
dspace.mit.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Vater, Katherine Ann. Appropriate technology water treatment processes for MaeLa Temporary Shelter, Thailand. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/43875