Handheld Peristaltic Pumps for Wastewater Sampling

Analysing wastewater has great importance in monitoring the environment, compliance oversight for various operations, and in the investigation of water quality. Be it a municipal treatment plant doing a compliance sampling, an environmental agency doing an inspection, or a research group investigating pollution, obtaining correct and representative samples is critical.

Historically, wastewater sampling relied on stationary, large pumps or Manual Grab Sampling. These methods are fraught with many disadvantages. This is where handheld peristaltic pumps come in. They are compact and lightweight, making them easy and quick to transport, thus enabling samples to be collected directly from the source in a short time. This, in turn, enhances the reliability and quality of the samples. At JIHPUMP, we are committed to innovative solutions, which is why we have developed the SC-III and SC-I Handheld Sampling Pumps to cater to the demanding field conditions of wastewater sampling.

What Is a Handheld Peristaltic Pump for Wastewater Sampling?

A handheld peristaltic pump is a small device which manages fluids. It aids in the movement of liquids through flexible tubes by compressing the tubes in a wave-like manner. Only the tubing contacts the liquid and the pump’s parts. This makes the device suitable where contamination is a concern.

In wastewater sampling, this design has several key advantages:

• Cross contamination in wastewater sampling is minimized due to the fluid’s path being confined to the tubing.
• The peristaltic pump is easy to maintain by replacing the pump’s tubes, making the device ready for the next task in minutes.
• The handheld peristaltic pump is easy to carry around due to its lightweight and battery operated design, making it useful for remote and on-site sampling.

For remote and site testing, handheld peristaltic pumps are more useful than submersible and vacuum pumps. These pumps are useful in harsh environmental conditions to field test liquids containing suspended solids and provide low flow rates without sample disturbance.

Why Handheld Peristaltic Pumps Are Ideal for Wastewater Sampling

The influent water quality of a sewage treatment plant has a significant impact on the adjustment of various process parameters throughout the sewage treatment process. Conducting overall detection and statistics of the influent water quality is a key point of control in the sewage treatment process. When environmental monitoring personnel and health and epidemic prevention workers go to the site for sampling, they are often troubled by the lack of power supply on site. When sampling, there is a need to collect liquids with high specific gravity and high viscosity, suspensions containing solid particles, conduct stratified sampling, avoid cross-infection, and be portable.

The handheld sampling peristaltic pump is suitable for water quality sampling under various environmental conditions. It is applicable to the collection of water samples from environmental monitoring stations at all levels, sewage treatment plants, water conservancy, water affairs and scientific research institutes, industrial sewage discharge outlets, rivers, lakes, seas, etc.

Portability and convenience

The handheld peristaltic pump is compact in size and lightweight in structure, and can be carried with one hand or placed in a small equipment box. On-site engineers, environmental inspectors and researchers can directly take them to the sampling site – whether it is a factory sewage outlet, a sewage pipe connection point or a remote water body.

No cross-contamination

Since the liquid only flows through the pipe, contamination from previous samples can be avoided. This is particularly important for compliance, as even trace amounts of contamination can lead to inaccurate results or failed tests.

Chemical resistance

Wastewater usually contains corrosive chemicals, oil or biological pollutants. By using chemically resistant hoses (such as Norprene®, Viton® or PTFE), this pump can handle corrosive fluids without damage.

Low-flow sampling

Some test protocols require low-flow sampling to avoid disturbing the sediment or altering the chemical composition of the sample. Handheld peristaltic pumps can operate at low and controllable speeds to meet these requirements.

Flexibility of battery power supply

In many on-site situations, power sockets cannot be used. The battery-powered handheld pump solves this problem and can run for several hours on a single charge.

Battery-Powered Flexibility

In many field situations, there is no access to an electrical outlet. Battery-powered handheld pumps solve this problem, enabling hours of operation on a single charge.

How to Use a Handheld Peristaltic Pump for Wastewater Sampling

Like any other operations, using a handheld peristaltic pump requires that you follow appropriate protocols to obtain accurate results that are free from any form of contamination.

Step 1: Choose the Right Tubing

Choose a material that will not react with the wastewater being sampled. A few examples are: Norprene® for general wastewater, Viton® for oils and solvents, and PTFE for strong acids or alkalis.

Step 2: Set Up the Pump

Make sure both the inlet and outlet tubing are properly placed. The inlet tubing should be placed into the wastewater source while the outlet tubing should be directed to a clean, labelled sample container.

Step 3: Adjust Flow Rate

If your pump has variable speed control, or like the JIHPUMP SC-III, ensure that the flow is set to match the sampling protocol, especially in cases where low-flow sampling is required.

Step 4: Start Sampling

Turn on the pump. Liquid flow should be maintained until the desired volume is collected. Ensure that no air bubbles are drawn in as this will affect sampling accuracy.

Step 5: Post Sampling Procedures

After the sample has been collected, clean the tubing with fresh water, or replace it to avoid contamination for the next use.

Watch the process

A step-by-step demonstration video SC-III Handheld Sampling Peristaltic Pump Operation Method has been created to visually guide through setup, sampling and care after use. Embedding the video in your workflows ensures that best protocols are adhered to for every use.

JIHPUMP Sampling Solutions

At JIHPUMP, we understand that wastewater sampling often takes place in challenging environments—harsh weather, corrosive fluids, or locations without power. That’s why we developed two specialized handheld peristaltic pumps to meet these needs.

SC-I Handheld Sampling Pump

For field work, the JIHPUMP SC-I is a single-channel handheld peristaltic pump that is best suited for effective and dependable wastewater sampling. It has a maximum channel quantity of 1 and a reference flow rate of 3600 ml/min, hence it has a good vertical lifting capacity for a variety of liquids.  

Key Features  

• Self-Powered and Portable: No additional power source is required, as it is powered by built-in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. Designed like a suitcase, the pump is easy to transport to remote and difficult terrains.  
• Easy to Use: Designed for simple and thorough operation, the pump head is quick to install and easy to remove for cleaning and maintenance.  
• Versatile Liquid Handling: Liquid handling of diverse calibration is enhanced by sampling of high gravity and high viscosity liquids, as well as liquids which contain solid particles in suspension.  
• Self-Powered and Portable: No additional power source is required, as it is powered by built-in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. Designed like a suitcase, the pump is easy to transport to remote and difficult terrains.  
• High-performance portable drivers with precise control: Control is versatile ranging from 0 to 1500 rpm, and increases with almost unlimited forward and reverse rotation.  
• Advanced capability in sampling: Enhanced by stratified sampling whereby a suction range of 8 metres is provided to ensure optimal performance during deep or difficult-access sampling.  

With these features, the SC-I is suitable for routine wastewater sampling, industrial discharge monitoring, and environmental compliance work.

SC-III Handheld Sampling Pump

The JIHPUMP SC-III is a low-flow peristaltic pump equipped with a single channel pump head capable of achieving a maximum flow rate of 295 ml/min. Best put, JIHPUMP SC-III is adept at accomplishing low-flow wastewater sampling in field conditions where precise control is paramount.

Key Features:

• Compact and Easy to Handle: The device is specifically designed for hand use, portable, and can easily be stowed and fielded in a rugged box, which is ideal for remote sampling.
• Powered with a Battery: Comes with an inbuilt rechargeable lithium-ion battery which allows the device to be used in remote locations for prolonged durations unlike pumps that needed to be plugged into a power source.
• Flow Control Adjustments: The pump head can be controlled in real-time for flow rate and direction of rotation which may be adjusted as needed to further accommodate changing sampling needs.

With the combination of the above, the SC-III can be used by environmental practitioners looking to get reliable low-flow sampling with precision and battery independence in difficult conditions.

In Summary

In wastewater sampling, the quality of the pump directly affects the accuracy of the results. The peristaltic hand pump is portable and resistant to chemicals and pollution, which makes it the ideal choice for field practitioners.

Proper equipment and technique make wastewater sampling faster, safer and more accurate, which is useful in compliance, protects the environment and allows scientific study.