scholarly journals A GIS-Based Model to Assess the Potential of Wastewater Treatment Plants for Enhancing Bioenergy Production Within the Context of the Water–Energy Nexus

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 2838
Author(s):  
Francesca Valenti ◽  
Attilio Toscano
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Green Energy ◽  
Green Economy ◽  
Bioenergy Production ◽  
Emilia Romagna Region

The necessity of developing renewable energy sources has contributed to increasing interest in developing the anaerobic digestion for producing biomethane since it both provides green energy and reduces disposal treatment. In this regard, to assure efficient water utilization by finding alternative water sources, sewage sludge collected from the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) was recently investigated because it could represent a suitable resource for producing biomethane within the context of a circular economy. Therefore, this study aims at improving the current knowledge on the feasibility of biomethane production from sewage sludge by optimizing the logistic-supplying phase. In this regard, a GIS-based model was developed and applied to the Emilia-Romagna region to consider the existing networks of WWTPs and biogas systems to valorize sewage sludge for bioenergy production and minimizing environmental impact. The results of the GIS analyses allowed to localize the highest productive territorial areas and highlighted where sewage sludges are abundantly located and could be better exploited within agricultural biogas plants. Finally, the achieved results could help plan suitable policy interventions that are centered on biomass supply and outputs diversification, governance, and social participation, since the regulatory framework could play a crucial role in planning the reuse of these wastes for developing a more sustainable biomethane sector in line with the green economy goals.

Sludge minimization by disintegration at different wastewater treatment plants

2008 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luchien Luning ◽  
Paul Roeleveld ◽  
Victor W.M. Claessen
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Anaerobic Digestion ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Biological Degradation ◽  
Ongoing Research ◽  
Sludge Minimization

In recent years new technologies have been developed to improve the biological degradation of sewage sludge by anaerobic digestion. The paper describes the results of a demonstration of ultrasonic disintegration on the Dutch Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) Land van Cuijk. The effect on the degradation of organic matter is presented, together with the effect on the dewatering characteristics. Recommendations are presented for establishing research conditions in which the effect of sludge disintegration can be determined in a more direct way that is less sensitive to changing conditions in the operation of the WWTP. These recommendations have been implemented in the ongoing research in the Netherlands supported by the National Institute for wastewater research (STOWA).

scholarly journals The Possible Roles of Wastewater Treatment Plants in Sector Coupling

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2088 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Schäfer ◽  
Oliver Gretzschel ◽  
Heidrun Steinmetz
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Local Heating ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Power Grids ◽  
Practical Utilization ◽  
Long Term Storage ◽  
Protection Goals ◽  
Reduction Of Co2

The development of a power system based on high shares of renewable energy sources puts high demands on power grids and the remaining controllable power generation plants, load management and the storage of energy. To reach climate protection goals and a significant reduction of CO2, surplus energies from fluctuating renewables have to be used to defossilize not only the power production sector but the mobility, heat and industry sectors as well, which is called sector coupling. In this article, the role of wastewater treatment plants by means of sector coupling is pictured, discussed and evaluated. The results show significant synergies—for example, using electrical surplus energy to produce hydrogen and oxygen with an electrolyzer to use them for long-term storage and enhancing purification processes on the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Furthermore, biofuels and storable methane gas can be produced or integrate the WWTP into a local heating network. An interconnection in many fields of different research sectors are given and show that a practical utilization is possible and reasonable for WWTPs to contribute with sustainable energy concepts to defossilization.

scholarly journals Sewage sludge as a source of triclosan-resistant bacteria

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 34-40
Author(s):  
Kristína Lépesová ◽  
Monika Krahulcová ◽  
Tomáš Mackuľak ◽  
Lucia Bírošová
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plant ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Coliform Bacteria ◽  
Resistant Bacteria ◽  
Citrobacter Freundii ◽  
Sludge Sample ◽  
Three Samples

Abstract Subinhibitory concentrations of antibiotics and biocides in wastewaters and sewage sludge have a great impact on the development of antibiotic resistance and its spread among bacteria. The aim of this work was to determine the occurrence of coliform bacteria and enterococci resistant to biocide triclosan in samples of sewage sludge. Subsequently, isolated strains of coliform bacteria were identified and characterized in terms of their antibiotic susceptibility and ability to form a biofilm. Occurrence of the studied bacteria was monitored in three samples of stabilized sludge from three different wastewater treatment plants (Vrakuňa, Petržalka, and Senec). The number of triclosan-resistant coliforms was the highest in the sludge sample from the wastewater treatment plant in Senec and the lowest in the sludge sample from the wastewater treatment plant in Petržalka. Triclosan-resistant Enterococcus spp. were not found in any sample of stabilized sludge. Most isolates were identified as Citrobacter freundii and Serratia spp. Triclosan-resistant isolates showed also resistance to antibiotics and the majority of them were strong biofilm producers.

scholarly journals The exploitation of swamp plants for dewatering liquid sewage sludge

2006 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-116
Author(s):  
Jiří Šálek
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Plant Biomass ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Main Attention ◽  
Local Conditions ◽  
Economic Exploitation ◽  
Rural Wastewater

The operators of little rural wastewater treatment plants have been interested in economic exploitation of sewage sludge in local conditions. The chance is searching simply and natural ways of processing and exploitation stabilized sewage sludge in agriculture. Manure substrate have been obtained by composting waterless sewage sludge including rest plant biomass after closing 6–8 years period of filling liquid sewage sludge to the basin. Main attention was focused on exploitation of swamp plants for dewatering liquid sewage sludge and determination of influence sewage sludge on plants, intensity and course of evapotranspiration and design and setting of drying beds. On the base of determined ability of swamp plants evapotranspiration were edited suggestion solutions of design and operation sludge bed facilities in the conditions of small rural wastewater treatment plant.

scholarly journals Biogas, Solar and Geothermal Energy—The Way to A Net-Zero Energy Wastewater Treatment Plant–A Case Study

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (21) ◽  
pp. 6898
Author(s):  
Sylwia Myszograj ◽  
Dariusz Bocheński ◽  
Mirosław Mąkowski ◽  
Ewelina Płuciennik-Koropczuk
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plant ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Electricity Consumption ◽  
Photovoltaic System ◽  
Conventional Activated Sludge ◽  
Net Zero ◽  
Energy Optimisation

Wastewater treatment plants designed to meet the requirements of discharging wastewater to a receiving water body are often not energy optimised. Energy requirements for conventional activated sludge wastewater treatment plants are estimated to range from 0.30 to 1.2 kWh/m3, with the highest values achieved using the nitrification process. This article describes the energy optimisation process of the wastewater treatment plant in Gubin (Poland) designed for 90 000 PE (population equivalent) using renewable energy sources: solar, biogas, and geothermal. At the analysed wastewater treatment plant electricity consumption for treating 1 m3 of wastewater was 0.679 kWh in 2020. The combined production of electricity and heat from biogas, the production of electricity in a photovoltaic system, and heat recovery in a geothermal process make it possible to obtain a surplus of heat in relation to its demand in the wastewater treatment plant, and to cover the demand for electricity, with the possibility of also selling it to the power grid.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of Selected Stages of Wastewater Treatment in Elimination of Eggs of Intestinal Parasites

2015 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jolanta Zdybel ◽  
Tomasz Cencek ◽  
Jacek Karamon ◽  
Teresa Kłapeć
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Municipal Wastewater ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Intestinal Parasites ◽  
Settling Tank ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Medium Size ◽  
Weak Points ◽  
The Mean

Abstract The objective of the study was to determine the degree of municipal wastewater contamination with intestinal parasite eggs of the genera Ascaris, Toxocara, and Trichuris at individual stages of treatment, and indication of potentially weak points in the hygienisation of sewage sludge. The study was conducted in 17 municipal mechanical-biological wastewater treatment plants which, to a slight degree, differed in the technological process of wastewater treatment and the method of hygienisation of sewage sludge. The selected treatment plants, located in seven regions, included five classified as large agglomerations (population equivalent - PE >100 000), ten as medium-size (PE 15 000-100 000), and two as smaller size with PE 10 000 - 5000. The largest number of viable eggs of Ascaris spp., Toxocara spp., and Trichuris spp. was found in the sewage sludge collected from the primary settling tank. A slightly lower number of the eggs were found in the samples of excess sludge, which indicates that the sedimentation process in the primary settling tank is not sufficiently long to effectively separate parasites’ eggs from the sewage treated. The number of eggs of Ascaris spp. and Toxocara spp. in the fermented sludge was nearly 3 times lower than that in the raw sludge. The effectiveness of hygienisation of dehydrated sewage sludge by means of quicklime was confirmed in two wastewater treatment plants, with respect to Ascaris spp. eggs, in three plants with respect to Toxocara spp. eggs, and in one plant with respect to Trichuris spp. eggs. The mean reduction of the number of eggs was 65%, 61%, and 100%, respectively. In one wastewater treatment plant, a reduction in the number of viable eggs of Ascaris and Trichuris species was also noted as a result of composting sludge by 85% and 75%, respectively. In the remaining treatment plants, no effect of hygienisation of sewage sludge was observed on the contents of viable eggs of these nematodes.

scholarly journals Risk Analysis of Heavy Metal Accumulation from Sewage Sludge of Selected Wastewater Treatment Plants in Poland

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (15) ◽  
pp. 2070
Author(s):  
Robert Kowalik ◽  
Jolanta Latosińska ◽  
Jarosław Gawdzik
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Environmental Risk ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Risk Index ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Heavy Metal Accumulation ◽  
Risk Assessment Code ◽  
High Level

Sewage sludge (SS) from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) has important soil-forming and fertilizing properties. However, it may not always be used for this purpose. One of the main reasons why SS cannot be used for natural purposes is its heavy metal (HM) content. SS from the wastewater treatment plant in Poland was subjected to an analysis of the potential anthropogenic hazard of HMs, especially in terms of their mobility and accumulation in soil. Calculations were made for the concentrations of HMs in SS from the analyzed wastewater treatment plants and in arable soil from measurement points in places of its potential use. The geoaccumulation index (GAI), potential environmental risk index (PERI), risk assessment code (RAC) and environmental risk determinant (ERD) were calculated. Then the values of the indicators were compared with the mobility of HMs, which was the highest risk of soil contamination. It was shown that a high level of potential risk and geoaccumulation indicators did not necessarily disqualify the use of SS, provided that HMs were in immovable fractions.

scholarly journals Overview on Bioconversion of Domestic Wastewater Sewage Sludge into Green Energy: Biogas and Hydrogen

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 232-241
Author(s):  
Joseph K. Bwapwa ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Municipal Wastewater ◽  
Inorganic Compounds ◽  
Large Fraction ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Green Energy ◽  
Municipal Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Production Of Hydrogen

Municipal wastewater treatment plants generate large amounts of sludge after a set of unit processes. The sewage sludge is an important resource for energy production because of its high level of biodegradability. Sewage sludges are generally made of non-toxic and biodegradable organic compounds mixed with a small fraction of non-toxic and toxic inorganic compounds having a very low biodegradability. The large fraction of biodegradable matter constitutes a pool for green/clean energy to be used for industrial and domestic applications. The generated energy can also be used in the wastewater treatment plant. Currently, fossil fuels are leading the energy world, however, they are being depleted and are considered to be among the main causes contributing to climate change and global warming. Domestic sewage sludge can be converted sustainably into bio-hydrogen and bio- methane. This conversion is achievable through anaerobic digestion, combustion, pyrolysis and gasification. With regard to the last three conversion processes, the organic and inorganic toxic compounds are eliminated. Production of biogas from sewage sludge is being undertaken worldwide on small, medium, and large scales. However, hydrogen production from sludge is still developing. There is an existence of substantial knowledge in this field, the production of hydrogen and biogas from sewage sludge is gaining interest. This study analyses various possibilities of sewage sludge conversion into clean energy. The analysis focuses on the technology strengths, weaknesses and gaps to be improved in future studies.

scholarly journals The Renewable Energy Sources for Municipal Wastewater Processes in Thailand: A Case Study of the Nonthaburi Wastewater Treatment Plant

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Krittiya Lertpocasombut ◽  
Sayan Sirimontree ◽  
Boonsap Witchayangkoon ◽  
Chanachai Thongchom ◽  
Veronica Winoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plant ◽  
Municipal Wastewater ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Municipal Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Alternative Sources ◽  
Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants

Abstract There are 101 municipal wastewater treatment plants in Thailand supplied with electricity and cannot collect wastewater treatment fees. Alternative sources of energy for municipal wastewater treatment would reduce the electricity costs and future fossil energy uses. The Nonthaburi wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) is located in the Northwest of Bangkok and selected due to its available data. The solar energy source is applied to the Nonthaburi WWTP due to the light intensity and the area to install. By comparing to the wind and the biogas sources, the wind speed and the sludge production are not sufficient, respectively. Besides the estimated installation cost of the solar-cell panels among three companies, the NPV of 25 years and the IRR of three percent rate, the area required for installation is an affecting factor for the plant consideration.

scholarly journals The Enhancement of Energy Efficiency in a Wastewater Treatment Plant through Sustainable Biogas Use: Case Study from Poland

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (22) ◽  
pp. 6056 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Masłoń ◽  
Joanna Czarnota ◽  
Aleksandra Szaja ◽  
Joanna Szulżyk-Cieplak ◽  
Grzegorz Łagód
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Sewage Sludge ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Energy Potential ◽  
Process Implementation

The improvement of energy efficiency ensuring high nutrients removal is a great concern for many wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). The energy balance of a WWTP can be improved through the application of highly efficient digestion or its intensification, e.g., through the introduction of the co-substrates with relatively high energy potential to the sewage sludge (SS). In the present study, the overview of the energetic aspect of the Polish WWTPs was presented. The evaluation of energy consumption at individual stages of wastewater treatment along with the possibilities of its increasing was performed. Additionally, the influence of co-digestion process implementation on the energy efficiency of a selected WWTP in Poland was investigated. The evaluation was carried out for a WWTP located in Iława. Both energetic and treatment efficiency were analyzed. The energy balance evaluation of this WWTP was also performed. The obtained results indicated that the WWTP in Iława produced on average 2.54 GWh per year (7.63 GWh of electricity in total) as a result of the co-digestion of sewage sludge with poultry processing waste. A single cubic meter of co-substrates fed to the digesters yielded an average of 25.6 ± 4.3 Nm3 of biogas (between 18.3 and 32.2 Nm3/m3). This enabled covering the energy demand of the plant to a very high degree, ranging from 93.0% to 99.8% (98.2% on average). Importantly, in the presence of the co-substrate, the removal efficiency of organic compounds was enhanced from 64% (mono-digestion) to 69–70%.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document