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Initial concepts for a non-electrical technique for the regulation of alum addition in a water treatment plant were tested. A riser pipe was fabricated with holes to mimic a sutro weir was added to the entrance tank of a water treatment plant. The entrance tank and riser pipe were evaluated on their ability to provide a linear correlation between water height in the entrance tank and the flow rate through the plant. Flow rates between 5 GPM and 36 GPM were tested in a pilot water treatment plant. The flow rate was shown to be linearly related to water height with the riser pipe implementation with a percent deviation of ten percent. This will allow creation of an alum flow control module regulated by a float system in the entrance tank. The experiment shows a significant achievement in the movement to bring clean water to communities without access to electricity.
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