Manufacturing, Engineering and Technology Fabrication and Extraction

Sand Clarifier Operation And Solution Clarification Training

SAQA US 110411 | NQF 2 | Credits 6 | Duration 3 Days
From $967 per delegate

Description

This course equips learners with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills required to operate sand clarifiers effectively and manage solution clarification processes. Participants will understand the principles of sedimentation, flocculation, and filtration to ensure optimal water or solution clarity in industrial settings. The training emphasizes safety protocols, troubleshooting, and regulatory compliance within the South African context.

Learning Outcomes

  • Apply principles of sedimentation and flocculation to optimize sand clarifier operation.
  • Demonstrate safe start-up, shutdown, and emergency procedures for sand clarifiers.
  • Analyze solution clarity parameters and adjust process variables to meet quality specifications.
  • Implement routine maintenance and troubleshooting techniques to minimize downtime.
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of clarification processes using standard testing methods.
  • Comply with relevant health, safety, and environmental regulations during clarifier operation.

Target Audience

This course is designed for process operators, plant technicians, and maintenance personnel involved in water treatment, mining, or chemical processing industries who are responsible for operating and maintaining sand clarifiers.

Prerequisites

None — open enrollment.

Course Outline

Day 1: Fundamentals of Sand Clarifier Operation

Objectives:
• Understand the purpose and principles of sand clarifiers in water treatment
• Identify key components and their functions
• Describe basic operational parameters and control methods
• Recognize safety hazards and apply relevant precautions
• Explain the role of sand clarifiers in solution clarification processes

Topics:
• Introduction to sand clarifiers: types and applications
• Principles of sedimentation and filtration
• Components: inlet/outlet structures, sand bed, underdrains, backwash system
• Operational parameters: flow rate, loading rate, head loss
• Safety in clarifier operation: confined space, electrical, chemical hazards
• Overview of standard operating procedures (SOPs)

Day 2: Monitoring, Control, and Troubleshooting

Objectives:
• Perform routine monitoring and adjust operational parameters
• Interpret performance indicators such as effluent quality and head loss
• Identify common operational problems and apply corrective actions
• Execute backwash procedures correctly
• Understand the impact of feed water characteristics on performance

Topics:
• Monitoring techniques: turbidity, pressure, flow measurement
• Control strategies: flow pacing, chemical dosing (if applicable)
• Troubleshooting: mud ball formation, channeling, sand loss
• Backwash procedures: initiation, rates, duration, waste handling
• Effect of temperature, solids loading, and particle size distribution
• Record keeping and reporting

Day 3: Advanced Operation, Maintenance, and Optimization

Objectives:
• Plan and execute preventive maintenance tasks
• Optimize clarifier performance for varying process conditions
• Apply problem-solving skills to complex operational scenarios
• Understand integration with downstream processes
• Comply with regulatory and quality standards

Topics:
• Preventive maintenance: inspection schedules, sand replacement, underdrain cleaning
• Performance optimization: adjusting backwash frequency, chemical optimization
• Integration with clarification systems: flocculation, sedimentation basins
• Regulatory compliance: effluent discharge standards, safety regulations
• Emergency procedures: power failure, equipment malfunction
• Case studies and best practices

Practicals

8 hours of practicals To be conducted online or on-campus or in-house
Overview

Hands-on practical sessions enable learners to apply theoretical knowledge to real sand clarifier operation, including monitoring, backwashing, and troubleshooting. Learners will gain competence in using instruments, performing standard procedures, and responding to typical operational issues.

Practical Activities
  • Practical 1: Clarifier Walkdown and Component Identification — Learners conduct a physical inspection of a sand clarifier, identifying major components and recording operational readings. (2h)
  • Practical 2: Backwash Procedure Execution — Learners perform a manual backwash cycle following SOP, monitoring key parameters and adjusting as needed. (3h)
  • Practical 3: Troubleshooting and Performance Adjustment — Given a simulated operational problem (e.g., high effluent turbidity), learners diagnose the cause and implement corrective actions. (3h)

Summatives

Each delegate is assessed continuously throughout the course via daily exercises, scored practical assignments, and a final summative test at the end.

Practical Assignments — 30%

Practical assignments are observed and scored against a rubric during the practical sessions. Each delegate's practical mark is averaged into a single 100% score and contributes 30% to the final total.

Daily Exercises — 20%

Every training day ends with a multiple-choice exercise scored out of 100%. The scores from each daily exercise are averaged across the duration of the course to produce a Daily Average mark, which contributes 20% to the final total.

Final Test — 50%

On the last day a final summative test is written. It is a multiple-choice paper with multiple-answer questions: each question may have more than one correct option, and a single wrong selection on a question marks the entire question wrong — no partial credit. The final test is scored out of 100% and contributes 50% to the overall mark.

Final Total
Component Out of Weight
Practical Assignments (rubric-scored) 100% 30%
Daily Average (multiple choice) 100% 20%
Final Test (multi-answer multiple choice) 100% 50%
Final Total 100%

All marks are recorded on the AATICD LMS and visible to each learner under their account.

Certificate

Certificate of Completion

Awarded to delegates who achieve an overall mark of 50% or higher on the Final Total (Practicals 30% + Daily Average 20% + Final Test 50%).

How it works
  • Certificates are auto-generated on the AATICD LMS as soon as the marks pass the 50% threshold.
  • Each certificate is a branded PDF with the delegate's name, the course title, the unit standard ID, NQF level, credits, and the date of issue.
  • You can download or print your certificate from your LMS dashboard at any time after issue — there's no reissue fee and no expiry date.
  • If you scored under 50% you can sit the final test again at the next scheduled session at no extra cost.
Where to find it

Sign in to the LMS, open your dashboard, and your certificates appear under My Certificates. Each entry has a View / Download button and a print option.

Training Discounts

Group discounts apply automatically — the more delegates you enrol, the greater the saving. Discounts are calculated at 3% per 5 delegates, scaling up to 40% off for 100+ delegates.

Delegates Discount
5 3% off
10 6% off
15 9% off
20 12% off
25 15% off
30 18% off
50 30% off
75 35% off
100 40% off

3% discount per 5 delegates, up to 40% off for 100+ delegates. Contact us for a custom group quote.

Upcoming Training Sessions
Online training — attend live sessions from anywhere via our virtual classroom.
Start End Delivery Season Price Action
Wed 09 Sep 2026 Fri 11 Sep 2026 Virtual Spring 2026 $967 Register
Tue 29 Sep 2026 Thu 01 Oct 2026 Virtual Spring 2026 $967 Register
Mon 19 Oct 2026 Wed 21 Oct 2026 Virtual Spring 2026 $967 Register
Wed 09 Dec 2026 Fri 11 Dec 2026 Virtual Summer 2026 $967 Register
Tue 12 Jan 2027 Thu 14 Jan 2027 Virtual Summer 2026 $967 Register
Mon 15 Feb 2027 Wed 17 Feb 2027 Virtual Summer 2026 $967 Register
Wed 03 Mar 2027 Fri 05 Mar 2027 Virtual Autumn 2027 $967 Register
Tue 09 Mar 2027 Thu 11 Mar 2027 Virtual Autumn 2027 $967 Register
Mon 15 Mar 2027 Wed 17 Mar 2027 Virtual Autumn 2027 $967 Register
Wed 09 Jun 2027 Fri 11 Jun 2027 Virtual Winter 2027 $967 Register
Tue 29 Jun 2027 Thu 01 Jul 2027 Virtual Winter 2027 $967 Register
Mon 19 Jul 2027 Wed 21 Jul 2027 Virtual Winter 2027 $967 Register
Wed 08 Sep 2027 Fri 10 Sep 2027 Virtual Spring 2027 $967 Register
Tue 28 Sep 2027 Thu 30 Sep 2027 Virtual Spring 2027 $967 Register
Mon 18 Oct 2027 Wed 20 Oct 2027 Virtual Spring 2027 $967 Register
Wed 08 Dec 2027 Fri 10 Dec 2027 Virtual Summer 2027 $967 Register
Tue 28 Dec 2027 Thu 30 Dec 2027 Virtual Summer 2027 $967 Register
Mon 17 Jan 2028 Wed 19 Jan 2028 Virtual Summer 2027 $967 Register
On-Campus training — face-to-face sessions at our training venues across Africa and beyond.
Showing all 498 sessions across 26 venues
Start End Venue Season Price Action
Mon 03 Aug 2026 Wed 05 Aug 2026 Cape Town, South Africa Winter 2026 $2,392 Register
Mon 03 Aug 2026 Wed 05 Aug 2026 Lagos, Nigeria Winter 2026 $3,796 Register
Tue 04 Aug 2026 Thu 06 Aug 2026 Dubai, UAE Winter 2026 $4,552 Register
Tue 04 Aug 2026 Thu 06 Aug 2026 Johannesburg, South Africa Winter 2026 $1,906 Register
Wed 05 Aug 2026 Fri 07 Aug 2026 Pretoria, South Africa Winter 2026 $1,447 Register
In-House training — we bring the trainer to your organisation, tailored to your team.
Start End Delivery Season Price Action
Mon 14 Sep 2026 Wed 16 Sep 2026 Your Premises Spring 2026 $1,258 Register
Wed 07 Oct 2026 Fri 09 Oct 2026 Your Premises Spring 2026 $1,258 Register
Tue 27 Oct 2026 Thu 29 Oct 2026 Your Premises Spring 2026 $1,258 Register
Mon 14 Dec 2026 Wed 16 Dec 2026 Your Premises Summer 2026 $1,258 Register
Wed 20 Jan 2027 Fri 22 Jan 2027 Your Premises Summer 2026 $1,258 Register
Tue 23 Feb 2027 Thu 25 Feb 2027 Your Premises Summer 2026 $1,258 Register
Mon 08 Mar 2027 Wed 10 Mar 2027 Your Premises Autumn 2027 $1,258 Register
Wed 17 Mar 2027 Fri 19 Mar 2027 Your Premises Autumn 2027 $1,258 Register
Tue 23 Mar 2027 Thu 25 Mar 2027 Your Premises Autumn 2027 $1,258 Register
Mon 14 Jun 2027 Wed 16 Jun 2027 Your Premises Winter 2027 $1,258 Register
Wed 07 Jul 2027 Fri 09 Jul 2027 Your Premises Winter 2027 $1,258 Register
Tue 27 Jul 2027 Thu 29 Jul 2027 Your Premises Winter 2027 $1,258 Register
Mon 13 Sep 2027 Wed 15 Sep 2027 Your Premises Spring 2027 $1,258 Register
Wed 06 Oct 2027 Fri 08 Oct 2027 Your Premises Spring 2027 $1,258 Register
Tue 26 Oct 2027 Thu 28 Oct 2027 Your Premises Spring 2027 $1,258 Register
Mon 13 Dec 2027 Wed 15 Dec 2027 Your Premises Summer 2027 $1,258 Register
Wed 05 Jan 2028 Fri 07 Jan 2028 Your Premises Summer 2027 $1,258 Register
Tue 25 Jan 2028 Thu 27 Jan 2028 Your Premises Summer 2027 $1,258 Register
Training Discounts
Delegates Discount
5 3% off
10 6% off
15 9% off
20 12% off
25 15% off
30 18% off
50 30% off
75 35% off
100 40% off

3% off per 5 delegates, up to 40% for 100+

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