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A Statistical Review of Virus Reduction in Coagulation, Flocculation, and Sedimentation Treatment Processes
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

A Statistical Review of Virus Reduction in Coagulation, Flocculation, and Sedimentation Treatment Processes

Mira Chaplin, Lars Andersland, Delaney Snead, Brian M. Pecson, Charles N. Haas, Daniel Gerrity, Adam Olivieri, Tim Dinh, Avery Sanchez, James Henderson, …
Water research (Oxford), v 301, 125953
15 Aug 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2026.125953
Featured in Collection :   Drexel's Newest Publications
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https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2026.125953View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open CC BY V4.0

Abstract

coagulation flocculation mixed-effects modeling potable reuse sedimentation virus
•Coagulation, flocculation, and sedimentation (CFS) is effective at reducing viruses; 68% of reported log reduction values were greater than 1•Virus reduction is lower in secondary effluent than in surface water, potentially justifying different frameworks for potable reuse vs. conventional drinking water•Virus reduction is substantially greater at low pH•φX174 and PRD1 are the viruses most consistently resistant to CFS, highlighting their potential role as conservative surrogates in future studies•Virus reduction is lower when measured using molecular methods than using infectivity methods Coagulation, flocculation, and sedimentation (CFS) is widely applied as a combined unit process in the treatment of drinking water, wastewater, and recycled water; however, virus reduction through CFS has not been sufficiently characterized to assign pathogen log reduction value (LRV) credits. This study collected data through a systematic review that yielded over 1000 LRVs from 43 manuscripts covering 46 viruses to characterize virus reduction through CFS. The results demonstrate that CFS is effective at reducing viruses, with 68% of virus LRVs greater than 1. A mixed-effects model was used to identify potential mechanisms of virus reduction with ferric and aluminum coagulants, as well as factors associated with variability in performance. Key insights from the model show that virus reduction is: (1) improved at lower pH, similar to natural organic matter (NOM) reduction, (2) lower in treatment of secondary effluent than in drinking water treatment, (3) virus-dependent, and (4) dependent on virus enumeration methods, with lower LRVs observed for molecular techniques. These findings demonstrate the potential for CFS to provide consistent and explainable virus reduction, potentially establishing a foundation for regulatory crediting in potable reuse applications. Future crediting frameworks will need to account for the factors impacting performance to accurately quantify and assign credit for virus reduction. [Display omitted]

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