To make moringa a practical, standardised water-treatment product, the active coagulant compounds need to be concentrated and characterised. This study focused on an efficient, cost-effective processing technique for Moringa oleifera seeds to produce a natural coagulant for drinking-water treatment.
Moringa seeds were processed by extracting the oil (using an electrothermal Soxhlet), then isolating and purifying the bio-active coagulant constituents by chromatography to determine their molecular weight.
Key findings
- The bio-active coagulant constituents fall in a low molecular-weight range of about 1000–6500 Daltons.
- The processing concentrates these constituents into an effective coagulant.
- The product can serve as an alternative to aluminium sulphate for water treatment worldwide.
Caveat: a processing and characterisation study; commercial production needs scale-up of the isolation steps.
Summary of: (2010). “Natural Coagulant from Moringa Seed for Treatment of Low Turbidity Water.” Journal of Water Resource and Protection, 2(3). DOI: 10.4236/jwarp.2010.23030. Summarised by MORIFA; full paper via the link above.