Nitrogen removal in multi-stage wastewater treatment plants by using a modified post-denitrification system

1998 ◽  
Vol 37 (9) ◽  
pp. 151-158
Author(s):  
Dieter Schreff ◽  
Peter A. Wilderer

Systems in which denitrification follows nitrification (post-denitrification) copy the natural sequence of nitrogen removal. The disadvantage of post-denitrification, however, is that an external carbon source must be added to the denitrification reactor. In the concept discussed in this paper, excess sludge from a high loaded activated sludge plant is used as carbon source and as source of denitrifiers in a three-stage system. The sludge is fed into a anoxic reactor placed in between the nitrification reactor (e.g., trickling filter) and the final clarifier. Two different operation methods were investigated at a pilot-scale system set up at the Ingolstadt wastewater treatment plant. Low nitrate effluent values were obtained at high sludge feeding rates, but at the expense of a significant increase in turbidity and NH4-N effluent concentrations. This problem could be solved by a reduction of the sludge feeding rate and by applying intermittent feeling. The effluent turbidity was kept at an acceptable level, but denitrification was relatively slow in progress. To achieve both low effluent turbidity and low nitrate discharge, a combination of pre- and post-denitrification is recommended.

1992 ◽  
Vol 26 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 1315-1323 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Aspegren ◽  
B. Andersson ◽  
U. Nyberg ◽  
J. la C. Jansen

Optimization of wastewater treatment plants with extensive phosphorus and nitrogen removal is complicated. The Klagshamn wastewater treatment plant in Sweden is operated with pre-precipitation of phosphorus with ferric chloride and denitrification with methanol as carbon source. An activated sludge process, operated with pre-precipitation and denitrification with external carbon source in a compartmentalized plant, requires only small tank volumes but increases the need for proper operation and optimization. On-line nitrogen, ammonia, and TOC sensors are used for a day-to-day control and optimization while mathematical modelling is used for long term strategic planning. The on-line measurements are further used as the basis for the modelling. TOC and ammonia sensors at the influent clearly identify typical and extreme loading variations and nitrate measurements in the activated sludge tanks and the effluent shows the dynamics of the processes. These measurements provide a basis for model calibration. In combination low residuals of nitrogen, phosphorus and organic matter can be achieved.


1996 ◽  
Vol 33 (12) ◽  
pp. 117-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Purtschert ◽  
H. Siegrist ◽  
W. Gujer

In coordination with the EU-guidelines the large wastewater treatment plants in Switzerland have to be extended with enhanced nitrogen removal. Due to the existing plant configuration, the low COD/N ratio and dilute wastewater, denitrification supported by an external carbon source instead of extending the plant may be an interesting and cost effective solution for municipal wastewater treatment. At the wastewater treatment plant Zürich-Werdhölzli different experiments were performed with methanol addition to predenitrification from March to July 1994. The aim of this work was to evaluate the use of methanol as an alternative to plant extension to achieve a higher nitrogen removal efficiency. Therefore, two parallel denitrifying lanes were investigated, one served for methanol addition experiments and the other as a control. The effect of oxygen input into the anoxic zone due to influent, return sludge and mixing was investigated, too. The results show that nitrogen removal efficiency can be substantially increased as compared to the reference lane. The adaptation period for methanol degradation was only a few days and the process was relatively stable. Based on total nitrogen in the inflow, the average denitrification was 55% with methanol addition and 35% without methanol. The yield coefficient YCOD was 0.4 g CODX g−1 CODMe. Due to the small net growth rate of the methanol degraders the denitrification capacity is relatively low and nitrate peak loads cannot be fully denitrified. Hence, methanol as a carbon source requires more or less constant dosing. To prevent nitrate limitation, methanol addition should be controlled by the anoxic nitrate concentrations.


1990 ◽  
Vol 22 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 65-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.-H. Schierup ◽  
H. Brix

Since 1983 approximately 150 full-scale emergent hydrophyte based wastewater treatment plants (reed beds) have been constructed in Denmark to serve small wastewater producers. The development of purification performance for 21 plants representing different soil types, vegetation, and hydraulic loading rates has been recorded. Cleaning efficiencies were typically in the range of 60-80% reduction for BOD, 25-50% reduction for total nitrogen, and 20-40% reduction for total phosphorus. The mean effluent BOD, total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations of the reed beds were 19 ± 10, 22 ± 9 and 6.7 ± 3.2 mg/l (mean ± SD), respectively. Thus, the general Danish effluent standards of 8 mg/l for N and 1.5 mg/l for P for sewage plants greater than 5,000 PE cannot be met by the present realised design of EHTS. The main problem observed in most systems is a poor development of horizontal hydraulic conductivity in the soil which results in surface run-off. Since the political demands for effluent quality will be more strict in the future, it is important to improve the performance of small decentral sewage treatment plants. On the basis of experiences from different types of macrophyte based and conventional low-technology wastewater treatment systems, a multi-stage system is suggested, consisting of sedimentation and sand filtration facilities followed by basins planted with emergent and submergent species of macrophytes and algal ponds.


2010 ◽  
Vol 62 (8) ◽  
pp. 1965-1965
Author(s):  
S. Park ◽  
J. Lee ◽  
J. Park ◽  
I. Byun ◽  
T. Park ◽  
...  

Publisher‘s note. We regret that the published version of this article erroneously denoted the first author as corresponding author; in fact the formal corresponding author of this paper is Professor Taeho Lee, whose address is repeated below.


2017 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 70-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanjun Mao ◽  
Xie Quan ◽  
Huimin Zhao ◽  
Yaobin Zhang ◽  
Shuo Chen ◽  
...  

Abstract The activated sludge (AS) process is widely applied in dyestuff wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs); however, the nitrogen removal efficiency is relatively low and the effluent does not meet the indirect discharge standards before being discharged into the industrial park's WWTP. Hence it is necessary to upgrade the WWTP with more advanced technologies. Moving bed biofilm processes with suspended carriers in an aerobic tank are promising methods due to enhanced nitrification and denitrification. Herein, a pilot-scale integrated free-floating biofilm and activated sludge (IFFAS) process was employed to investigate the feasibility of enhancing nitrogen removal efficiency at different hydraulic retention times (HRTs). The results showed that the effluent chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonium nitrate (NH4+-N) and total nitrogen (TN) concentrations of the IFFAS process were significantly lower than those of the AS process, and could meet the indirect discharge standards. PCR-DGGE and FISH results indicated that more nitrifiers and denitrifiers co-existed in the IFFAS system, promoting simultaneous nitrification and denitrification. Based on the pilot results, the IFFAS process was used to upgrade the full-scale AS process, and the effluent COD, NH4+-N and TN of the IFFAS process were 91–291 mg/L, 10.6–28.7 mg/L and 18.9–48.6 mg/L, stably meeting the indirect discharge standards and demonstrating the advantages of IFFAS in dyestuff wastewater treatment.


2013 ◽  
Vol 67 (7) ◽  
pp. 1481-1489 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Barat ◽  
J. Serralta ◽  
M. V. Ruano ◽  
E. Jiménez ◽  
J. Ribes ◽  
...  

This paper presents the plant-wide model Biological Nutrient Removal Model No. 2 (BNRM2). Since nitrite was not considered in the BNRM1, and this previous model also failed to accurately simulate the anaerobic digestion because precipitation processes were not considered, an extension of BNRM1 has been developed. This extension comprises all the components and processes required to simulate nitrogen removal via nitrite and the formation of the solids most likely to precipitate in anaerobic digesters. The solids considered in BNRM2 are: struvite, amorphous calcium phosphate, hidroxyapatite, newberite, vivianite, strengite, variscite, and calcium carbonate. With regard to nitrogen removal via nitrite, apart from nitrite oxidizing bacteria two groups of ammonium oxidizing organisms (AOO) have been considered since different sets of kinetic parameters have been reported for the AOO present in activated sludge systems and SHARON (Single reactor system for High activity Ammonium Removal Over Nitrite) reactors. Due to the new processes considered, BNRM2 allows an accurate prediction of wastewater treatment plant performance in wider environmental and operating conditions.


2012 ◽  
Vol 65 (9) ◽  
pp. 1676-1683 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. M. Tardy ◽  
V. Bakos ◽  
A. Jobbágy

A survey has been carried out involving 55 Hungarian wastewater treatment plants in order to evaluate the wastewater quality, the applied technologies and the resultant problems. Characteristically the treatment temperature is very wide-ranging from less than 10 °C to higher than 26 °C. Influent quality proved to be very variable regarding both the organic matter (typical COD concentration range 600–1,200 mg l−1) and the nitrogen content (typical NH4-N concentration range 40–80 mg l−1). As a consequence, significant differences have been found in the carbon availability for denitrification from site to site. Forty two percent of the influents proved to lack an appropriate carbon source. As a consequence of carbon deficiency as well as technologies designed and/or operated with non-efficient denitrification, rising sludge in the secondary clarifiers typically occurs especially in summer. In case studies, application of intermittent aeration, low DO reactors, biofilters and anammox processes have been evaluated, as different biological nitrogen removal technologies. With low carbon source availability, favoring denitrification over enhanced biological phosphorus removal has led to an improved nitrogen removal.


1994 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralf Otterpohl ◽  
Thomas Rolfs ◽  
Jörg Londong

Computer simulation of activated sludge plant for nitrogen removal has become a reliable tool to predict the behaviour of the plant Models including biological phosphorus removal still require some practical experience but they should be available soon. This will offer an even wider range than today's work with nitrogen removal. One major benefit of computer simulation of wastewater treatment plants (WTP) is the optimization of operation. This can be done offline if hydrographs of a plant are collected and computer work is done with “historical” analysis. With online simulation the system is fed with hydrographs up to the actual time. Prognosis can be done from the moment of the computer work based on usual hydrographs. The work of the authors shows how accuratly a treatment plant can be described, when many parameters are measured and available as hydrographs. A very careful description of all details of the special plant is essential, requiring a flexible simulation tool. Based on the accurate simulation a wide range of operational decisions can be evaluated. It was possible to demonstrate that the overall efficiency in nitrogen removal and energy consumption of ml activated sludge plant can be improved.


2000 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Vandaele ◽  
C. Thoeye ◽  
B. Van Eygen ◽  
G. De Gueldre

In Flanders (Belgium) an estimated 15% of the population will never be connected to a central wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Small WWTPs can be a valuable option. Aquafin bases the decision to build SWWTPs on a drainage area study. To realise an accelerated construction the process choice is made accordingly to a standard matrix, which represents the different technologies in function of the size and the effluent consents. A pilot scale constructed two-stage reed bed is used to optimise the concept of the reed beds. The concept consists of a primary clarifier, two parallel vertical flow reed beds followed by a sub-surface flow reed bed. The removal efficiency of organic pollutants is high (COD: 89%, BOD: 98%). Phosphorus removal is high at the start-up but diminishes throughout the testing period (from 100% to 71% retention after 7 months). Nitrogen removal amounts to 53% on average. Nitrification is complete in summer. Denitrification appears to be the limiting factor. In autumn leakage of nitrogen is assumed. Removal efficiency of pathogens amounts to almost 99%. Clogging forms a substantial constraint of the vertical flow reed bed. Problems appear to be related with presettlement, feed interval and geotextile.


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