Scientific and Technical Report Series

Mechanism and Design of

Sequencing Batch Reactors
for Nutrient Removal
Scientific and Technical Report No. 19

Nazik Artan and Derin Orhon

Istanbul Technical University, Environmental Engineering Department

Published with the knowledge of the IWA Specialist Group on Nutrient Removal and Recovery

Published by IWA Publishing, Alliance House, 12 Caxton Street, London SW1H 0QS, UK
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7654 5500; Fax: +44 (0) 20 7654 5555; Email: publications@iwap.co.uk
Web: www.iwapublishing.com
First published 2005
2005 IWA Publishing
Index prepared by Indexing Specialists, Hove, UK.
Printed by Lightning Source
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The publisher makes no representation, express or implied, with regard to the accuracy of the information contained
in this book and cannot accept any legal responsibility or liability for errors or omissions that may be made.
Disclaimer
The information provided and the opinions given in this publication are not necessarily those of IWA or of the IWA
Specialist Group on Nutrient Removal and Recovery, and should not be acted upon without independent consideration
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person acting or refraining from acting upon any material contained in this publication.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging- in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress
ISBN 1843390825

Contents

Preface
The Authors
Nomenclature

vii
ix
x

1
1.1
1.2
1.2.1
1.2.2
1.3
1.3.1
1.3.2

Introduction
Historical perspective
Current experience
Basic and applied research
Full-scale application
Need for modeling and a unified basis for design
The concept of process stoichiometry and modelling
Objective and scope

1
1
3
3
5
5
6
7

2
2.1
2.1.1
2.1.2
2.1.3
2.1.4
2.1.5
2.1.6
2.2
2.3
2.3.1
2.3.2
2.4

Process description
General description
Cycle frequency (m)
Nominal Hydraulic Retention Time (HRT)
Duration of phases in a cycle
Duration of periods in a process phase
Number of tanks
Sludge Retention Time (SRT)
Reactor hydraulics
Process options
Carbon removal and nitrification
Nutrient removal
Effects of filling and aeration patterns on population dynamics

9
9
10
10
11
11
12
12
13
16
16
17
22

3
3.1
3.2
3.2.1

Process design for carbon removal

Basic principles
Selection of SRT
Effluent quality

23
23
25
26

vi

Mechanism and Design of SBRs

3.2.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.5.1
3.5.2
3.5.3

Excess sludge production and reactor biomass

Single tank design principles
Aeration system design principles
Process design
Design procedure
SBR equipment and the practical aspects of SBR design
Design example

26
27
30
33
33
36
41

4
4.1
4.1.1
4.1.2
4.1.3
4.2
4.2.1
4.2.2
4.2.3
4.3
4.3.1
4.3.2
4.3.3
4.3.4
4.4

Process design for nutrient removal

Basic principles for nitrogen removal
Nitrogen mass balances
Carbon and nitrate limitations
Selection of process option
Unified design procedure for nitrogen removal
SBR design for pre-denitrification
SBR design for step feeding
SBR design for intermittent aeration
Design considerations for phosphorus removal
Mechanism of Biological Phosphorus Removal
Factors affecting EBPR
EBPR without nitrogen removal
Simultaneous nitrogen and phosphorus removal
Retrofit of existing SBR plants

46
46
47
49
50
51
53
57
59
60
61
61
63
64
66

5
5.1
5.2
5.2.1
5.2.2
5.3
5.3.1
5.3.2
5.4
5.4.1
5.4.2
5.5

Performance evaluation by simulation models

Need for simulation models
Performance evaluation for COD removal
Effect of filling on effluent soluble COD
Effect of filling on dissolved oxygen profile
Performance evaluation for nitrogen removal
Evaluation of simulation results
Comparison of process options
Performance evaluation for phosphorus removal
Effect of system parameters
Effect of wastewater composition
Evaluation of simultaneous nitrogen and phosphorus removal
performances
5.6 Evaluations of dynamic conditions
6 Concluding Remarks
References
Index

69
69
71
73
75
76
77
81
82
82
85
88
89
92
94
97

Preface

This report is prepared to provide the basic understanding and description of a unified basis
of design for suspended-growth sequencing batch reactors. It is hoped that it will be useful
as a complement to an earlier volume of the IWAs Scientific and Technology Report Series,
mainly covering practical aspects of sequencing batch reactor technology, but also
emphasizing the need for appropriate design guidelines.
The proposed basis for design is elaborated in a stepwise approach for both organic
carbon removal and nutrient control. Nutrient removal from wastewaters presents a vital
importance for the protection of sensitive water bodies from eutrophication. Greater concern
for the water quality has been the major incentive for the implementation of stringent effluent
regulations. The increasigly stricter nitrogen and phosphorus limits on wastewater discharges
have stimulated studies on improving the activated sludge process and developing single
sludge biological nutrient removal process configurations. Accumulated experience indicate
that SBR also incorporates all the necessary attributes to qualify as a viable and competitive
alternative to continuous-flow systems for nutrient removal. With their intrinsic flexibility of
operation, SBR systems can be engineered in a simple way, to provide the most feasible
process options for different nitrogen and phosphorus removal schemes. The striking feature
of various SBR configurations for nutrient removal is that they can all be interpreted with a
unified design approach, provided that the specific operating functions are fully understood
and interpreted in terms of related mass balance equations.
The main message of the report is that SBR systems with different modes of filling and
operation should not be viewed and interpreted as different generic SBR groups. The unified
design procedure, when properly understood and applied, will provide all the necessary tools
for the selection of the most appropriate cyclic operation scheme, the sequence of necessary
phases and filling patterns for the particular application. Support of model simulation and
evaluation as an integral component of system design is also emphasized.
The report has greatly benefited from the accumulated scientific work so far conducted at
Istanbul Technical University on microbial kinetics and especially, on the mechanistic
evaluation of different activated sludge configurations.

viii

Mechanism and Design of SBRs

We gratefully acknowledge the contribution of Reha Artan on practical aspects of SBR

operation. We would also like to express our gratitude to our colleagues, Gl Insel and
Nevin zgr Yac for their valuable time and effort in the preparation of various parts of
the manuscript.
Nazik Artan
Derin Orhon