Mamaia - Sand Drifts A Challenge for Filtration System
Filter Substrate Channels DRAINFIX CLEAN Installed on Black Sea Beach Promenade
Close to 8,500 meters of the filter substrate channels DRAINFIX CLEAN were installed in the Romanian seaside resort Mamaia as a solution for draining and purifying surface water. A system was required that could guarantee an efficient performance while being easy to maintain, without replacing the filter material every time. The condition was that maintenance costs should remain exactly calculable.
Mamaia is among the most popular seaside resorts along the Romanian Black Sea shoreline. Its broad beaches attract many tourists each year. Sand stretches along a narrow tongue of land separating the Black Sea and the freshwater lake Siut-Ghiol. In an extensive building project, the infrastructure of the beach promenade and of a majority of streets and squares were renovated.
The new channel system is multifunctional. Aside from guaranteeing reliant surface drainage, it also cleans the water during the drainage process by filtering and absorbing more than 99 percent of pollutants. At the same time, the DRAINFIX CLEAN system is flexible enough to be easily installed in different channel bodies like RECYFIX composite channels.
Sturdy channel system with convenient properties
The channel system was an ideal fit for the use in such close proximity to the sea. The composite channel bodies combine material properties especially beneficial for the job. They offer a high degree of corrosion resistance while withstanding stress caused by traffic and temperature differences. Furthermore, the channels are true lightweights and allow for comfortable installation. Even rough handling on site will not result in a ruptured channel. Once the channels were installed, the geotextile-lined drainage pipe was placed at the channel bottom. Subsequently, connectors and links were added and the filter substrate Carbotec 60 was filled in. After levelling the substrate’s top layer, adjusting its height to the exact specifications of the nominal diameter, the ductile iron gratings were mounted, making the system functional and fully operational.
DRAINFIX CLEAN is premised on surface filtration
Surface water is cleaned by way of the patented channel filter DRAINFIX CLEAN. The filter material consists of carbonaceous substrate. The surface filtration is able to retain the polluted compounds – microscopic particles smaller than 60 μm (0.06 mm). During surface filtration, solids accumulate on the top layer of a filter medium with an accordingly calibrated filter resistance. A deep-bed filtration process in comparison allows the particles to penetrate the filter medium and sediment in its deeper layers. Surface filtration therefore requires a much finer pore volume in order to retain more and smaller pollutants. The retention time during the flow-through is also considerably longer. This way, even solved agents like heavy metals can be bound by the filtration substrate effectively, permanently and with high salt stability. The system delivers an excellent purification performance despite its relatively low filter capacities.
Maintenance without filter replacement
What impact do sand drifts have on decentralized storm water treatment facilities? Tempestuous autumn and winter months can be frequently witnessed at the shores of the Black Sea. Wind drift causes substantial amounts of sand from the beach to form enormous sedimental layers in a filter system. Committing to the principle of surface filtration based upon a filter’s specific permeability, DRAINFIX CLEAN easily copes with the sand and sediment layers building up. At the same time, it provides a sufficient filter area for the retention of solids and pollutants. Thus, the sand barely impacts the filter’s functionality. Only in order to maintain the retention space within the channel, it is occasionally necessary to remove the sand that has been washed into the channel. However, this can be done without having to exchange the filter substrate.
This ensures a lasting and reliant storm water treatment for the beach promenade of Mamaia.
