Which of the following is one of the four basic processes for removing iron or manganese?

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Oxidation followed by removal of the resulting solids is a primary way to remove iron and manganese from water. Aeration exposes water to air, supplying the oxygen needed to convert dissolved Fe2+ and Mn2+ into insoluble oxides and hydroxides (Fe3+ and Mn4+). Those oxidized forms precipitate as fine particles that can be captured by a downstream treatment step, typically a filtration or settling process. In other words, aeration starts the transformation from dissolved metals to solid particles that are easy to remove, which is why it’s a foundational method for iron and manganese removal. Coagulation can assist with particle formation, but it isn’t the main removal step in this context; distillation isn’t used for this purpose, and filtration alone can’t remove dissolved iron or manganese without first oxidizing them.