BIOLOGICAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT

Wastewater contains complex mixture of solids and dissolved components, with the latter usually present in very small concentrations.
In treatment plants, all these contaminants must be reduced to acceptably low concentrations or chemically transformed into inoffensive
compounds.
The overall system design used to accomplish this varies depending upon the type and amount of wastewater to be treated and economic and
environmental considerations.

Wastewater Treatment

Preliminary Treatment - The purpose of these processes is to refine the incoming wastewaters characteristics to make the water more
conducive to treatment in downstream processes. Preliminary treatment is also designed to remove undesirable pollutant constituents and
debris from the influent to prevent it from interfering with downstream treatment systems and to protect subsequent equipment from
damage. Typical preliminary treatment processes include screening, shredding, grit removal, equalization, and pH neutralization.

Primary Treatment The objective is the removal of settleable organic and inorganic solids by settling/sedimentation, and the removal of
materials that will float (scum) by skimming. Approximately 25 to 50% of the incoming biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), 50 to 70%
of the total suspended solids (SS), and 65% of the oil and grease are removed during primary treatment. Soluble pollutants are not
removed.

Secondary Treatment - Main goal is removal of BOD5 and SS that are not removed in the primary treatment, and is usually a biological
process, and can remove more than 85% of the BOD and SS, but it does not remove significant amount of N, P, or heavy metals, nor does
it completely remove pathogenic bacteria and viruses. It is achieved using any or combination of the 2 processes: a.) suspended growth (or
suspended film) systems, and b.) Attached growth or suspended film) systems. Both can be aerobic or anaerobic. Examples of biological
processes are: activated sludge, trickling filters, rotating biological reactors (RBC), lagoons (stabilization/oxidation/finishing ponds), etc.

Tertiary Treatment - Main purpose is removal of constituents that are not adequately removed during secondary treatment which could
include heavy metals, nutrients such as N, P, bacteria, viruses, and other constituents of concern. The process may include physical,
chemical, and biological processes, and could remove as much as 99% of the BOD, P, SS, & bacteria; 95% of N.; and can produce clean,
sparkling, clear, odourless effluents indistinguishable from drinking water. Examples of tertiary processes: nitrification, denitrification,
reverse osmosis, ion exchange, biological P removal process, chemical process for P removal, etc.

Sludge, a wet, concentrated solid wastes removed in primary treatment.

Cell sludge is generated in secondary biological treatment.
Sludge handling and treatment is consequently an important part of the water-treatment plant.
One popular process for the sludge-volume reduction in sewage plants is anaerobic digestion, where organic material is biologically
decomposed in an anaerobic environment.
Some wastewaters are discharged into receiving waters such as streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, and oceans with no treatment whatsoever.

PRE-TREATMENT
COMMINUTORS/GRINDERS
RACKS OR COARSE SCREENS
GRIT CHAMBER
INFLUENT
PHYSICAL FLOCCULATION
WASTEWATER
PREAERATION
SKIMMING

TERTIARY TREATMENT

PRIMARY TREATMENT
FINE SCREENS
PLAIN SEDIMENTATION
FLOTATION
GRANULAR BED
FILTRATION

SECONDARY TREATMENT

ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS

NEUTRALIZATION
TRICKLING FILTER
REDOX PRECIPITATION
STABILIZATION POND
COAGULATION
SECONDARY SEDIMENTATION
AERATED LAGOON
CHEMICAL FLOCCULATION

DISINFECTION

EFFLUENT WASTEWATER

WASTEWATER CHARACTERISTICS
TWO MAIN CLASSES OF WASTEWATER:

INDUSTRIAL EFFLUENTS
DOMESTIC WASTES/SEWAGE consists of substances such as ground garbage, laundry
water, and excrement. More than 99% water, sewage typically contains 300 ppm of suspended
solids and about 500 ppm volatile material. Much of the suspended solid component is cellulose,
and the bulk of organic matter present is in the form of fatty acids, carbohydrates, and proteins in
that order. The bad odor of sewage derives from protein decomposition under anaerobic
conditions. Sewage contains a varied population of soil and intestinal microorganisms including
aerobes, strict and facultative anaerobes, bacteria, yeasts, molds, and fungi. The sewage
microbial populations provide continuous mixed-culture inoculums for the biological treatment
processes and also supply the metabolic capacity used in the following standard analysis of
wastewater composition.

INDICATORS AND PARAMETERS OF WASTEWATER COMPOSITION:

Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) amount of dissolved oxygen which is consumed by

sewage incubated for a specific length of time at 20 C. The length of incubation time is often
shown as a subscript: thus the BOD determined from a 5-day incubation, which is a common
intervals, is denoted BOD5.
BOD t=L o ( 1eKt )
Where: K = deoxygenation constant
For polluted and wastewater: K20 C = 0.10/day
For sewage:
K20 C = 0.23/day
At different temperatures: KT = K20 (T-20)
= 1.056 (T=20-30C)
1.135 (T<20C)
1.047 (T>30C)
*ultimate BOD (BODu) amount of dissolved oxygen consumed in an incubation which is
continued until carbonaceous biological oxidation ceases. Originally devised in 1898 by the
British Royal Commission on Sewage Disposal.
A lowered dissolved oxygen value can quickly lead to death of many aerobic organisms and
animals; the result may be a murky, smelly river contaminated with pathogenic microbes.

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) overall oxygen load which a waste water will impose on the
receiving water. It is equal to the number of milligrams of oxygen which a liter of sample will
absorb from a hot, acidic solution of potassium dichromate. The COD value is usually greater
than the BO of the same sample. Although it is less directly related to the polluting effects of
sewage than BOD, COD has the advantage of being measurable in about 2 h by conventional
methods or in a few minutes using sophisticated instruments.

Other parameters often used to characterize water quality are phosphorus, nitrogen, and
suspended solids concentrations.
PARAMETRS
BOD, mg/L
COD, mg/L
Total phosphorus, mg/L
Nitrogen, mg/L
Suspended solids, mg/L

INFLUENT
WASTEWATER
100 250
200 700
6 10
20 30
100 - 400

RAW EFFLUENT
IN
AN
ACCEPTABLE PLANT
5 15
15 75
0.2 0.6
25
10 - 25

BIOLOGICAL TREATMENT METHODS

-

Use microorganisms to reduce the biodegradable organic content of the wastewater by using them as
food for metabolism converting the organics into harmless stable products.
General Biochemical Reaction
Organic Matter (CHONSP) + cells + O2 simple compounds + more cells (soluble/biodegradable)

o ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS a continuous re-circulating aerobic biochemical process that keeps
cells in suspended growth. A common bacterium in the activated-sludge population is Zoogloea
ramigera. The most important characteristic of this organism and others in the sludge is their propensity
for synthesizing and secreting a polysaccharide gel. Because of this gel, the microbes tend to
agglomerate into flocs, which are called activated sludge. A special property of activated sludge is its
high affinity for suspended solids, including colloidal materials.

Microorganisms suspended in liquid Secondary sedimentation

Clarified Effluent
F
AEROBIC BIOLOGICAL REACTOR
Influent from primary sedimentation
SETTLING SLUDGE
V
So
(1 + )F
(1 )F

sa, xa
Air supply-mixing and oxygen for biological reaction
F

Recycle of concentrated sludge

se,xe

( + ) F
xr, sr
F

SIMPPLIFICATION FOR DESIGN AND MODELLING OF ACTIVATED-SLUDGE

PROCESSES:
sludge
Xr,Excess
sr
o Aeration basin is treated as perfectly mixed vessel

o Sludge is viewed as a single pseudo species whose growth rate follows Monod Kinetics with an
additional endogenous metabolism decay term.

Steady-state mass balance on active solids in the process:

( 1 ) F x e + F x r =V x a

max sa
k
sa + K s e

1 max s a
=
k e
s sa + K s

Where

is the mean residence time of the activated sludge (ratio of active-solids retention to active-

solids effluent rate), sometimes called the sludge age:

s =

V xa
F (1 ) x e + F x r

In most sewage treatment plants, the sludge age is of the order of 6 to 15 days.
Steady-state conservation equation for substrate in the aeration basin assuming substrate is not separated in
the clarifier (sa = se =sr) and assuming a constant yield factor:
activesolids weig ht ,V x a=

V =F s 1+

xr
xa

YF s ( s osa )
1+ k e s

AEROBIC DIGESTION
The high biological content sludge product from an activated sludge operation is frequently
subjected to an additional aeration step which operates like an unfed activated sludge system. In
this circumstance, the biomass utilizes its own carbon in endogenous respiration, and the net
result is typically a 50% reduction of solids content. No cell recycle is used, and cell and
hydraulic residence times are thus equal at 15 to 25 days. This treatment diminishes the total
sludge mass to be disposed of by hauling (truck or barge).

NITRIFICATION oxidation of ammonia to nitrite then nitrate in order to yield a final effluent of
sufficiently low oxygen demand. Two microbial species are responsible for these conversions,
nitrosomonas and nitrobacter.


N H 3+C O2+O2 Nitrosomonas cells+ N O2

+ C O2+ O2 Nitrobacter cells+ N O 3

NO

Specific growth rates for each of these species follow a simple Monod function form;
YN , g cells/g N
Nitrosomonas
Nitrobacter

0.05
0.02

max , day-1
0.33
0.14

Ks, mg/L
1.0
2.1

Material balances on Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter species can be used to evaluate the effluent
ammonia and nitrite concentrations from the activated sludge reactor, the throughput of which is
generally based on BOD removal requirements.

TRICKLING BIOLOGICAL FILTER

The so-called trickling or percolating biological filter is a popular alternative to the activatedsludge process. Here a film or slime of microorganisms lives on solid packing which loosely
fills a vessel (void fraction about 0.5) designed to permit air to enter the lower portion of the bed.
Liquid to be treated is fed to the top of the bed, which typically is 3 to 10 ft deep, either
continuously, through fixed nozzles over the bed, or periodically, using a rotating distributor. The
liquid rate must not be high enough to flood the bed. To ensure adequate oxygen supply, the
liquid should trickle over the slime-covered packing in films sufficiently thin for the oxygen
continuously to supply aerobic organisms in the outer surface of the microbial film. Air is
circulated through the trickling filter by natural convection.
The driving force for this convection is the temperature difference generated in the trickling filter
by biological oxidation of the sewage; air ports and accompanying ventilation pipes within the
filter allow air to enter the bottom and intermediate portions of the bed.

LAGOON SYSTEMS
Much more primitive than either the activated-sludge or trickling-biological filter processes,
provide another useful method for wastewater treatment. In oxidation ponds, which closely
resemble natural aquatic ecosystems, algae free oxygen through photosynthesis, therby
maintaining aerobic conditions for bacteria which consume organic wastes. Oxidation ponds are
made quite shallow, typically 2 to 4 ft deep, to avoid establishment of anaerobic zones near the
bottom. On the other hand, we find anaerobic conditions or an alternating temporal pattern of
aerobic and anaerobic environment in waste-stabilization lagoons, which are used for wastes
containing settleable solids.

ANAEROBIC DIGESTION

It is a series of processes in which microorganisms break down biodegradable material in the

absence of oxygen. It is used for industrial or domestic purposes to manage waste and/or to
release energy.

Stages of Anaerobic Digestion

o Hydrolysis - bacteria transform the particulate organic substrate into liquefied monomers
and polymers.
Organic Matters
- Proteins, carbohydrates and fats
Monomers and Polymers
- Amino acids, monosaccharides and fatty acids
o Acidogenesis - acidogenic bacteria transform the products of the first reaction into short
chain volatile acids, ketones, alcohols, hydrogen and carbon dioxide.
o Acetogenesis - the rest of the acidogenesis products, i.e. the propionic acid, butyric acid
and alcohols are transformed by acetogenic bacteria into hydrogen, carbon dioxide and
acetic acid.
o Methanogenesis - microorganisms convert the hydrogen and acetic acid formed by the
acid formers to methane gas and carbon dioxide.

Mixing is provided to prevent high local concentrations of acids from developing.

In order to maintain a satisfactory environment for both acid formers and methane bacteria,
digesters are operated at a pH around 7.
An external heat exchanger is necessary, which provides an above-ambient temperature in the
mesophilic range which maximizes the rate of sludge digestion, about 90 to 100 F.
The solids-residence time required for anaerobic sludge digestion at mesophilic temperatures is
10 to 30 days in a well-agitated unit.
Anaerobic digestion process produces a fuel which can be used to reduce energy costs for the
wastewater-treatment plant.
Methane produced by anaerobic waste treatment is used outside the plant for heating and power.

ANAEROBIC DENITRIFICATION
Nitrogen reduction is accomplished under anaerobic circumstances by a variety of bacteria which
can consume organics and utilize nitrate and nitrite as electron acceptors. Two separate paths
occur:
a. In assimilatory nitrate reduction, some nitrogen becomes ammonia and is incorporated into
cell biomass.
b. In dissimilating reduction, molecular nitrogen is the final product.
As not all bacteria can affect both conversions, two independent reactions can be written:

+C O2
+ ORGANIC CELLS+ N O2
N O3
+ ORGANIC CELLS+ N 2+C O2
N O2

The organic may be added to give a level sufficient to effect the desired conversion of nitrate.
Packed bed lab denitrification studies have shown that the dissolved NO 3- and NO2- levels vary
with distance according to a simple sequential reaction pattern, leading to high N removal
efficiency as characterizes a plug flow operation. Cell growth eventually lead to reactor
plugging; thus process design improvements are needed in this emerging area of denitrification
conversions.

PHOSPHATE REMOVAL
Phosphorus is typically present in raw wastewaters at concentration near 10 mgP/L, including
orthophosphate, dehydrated orthophosphate and organic phosphorus. Biological treatment
processes result in conversion of most P to the orthophosphate forms. These latter forms may be
removed by precipitation if effluent guidelines on phosphorus require low phosphate values
relative to the influent. Precipitating agents may include calcium or aluminium.
C a 5 ( OH ) ( P O4 )3 +3 H 2 O
2++ 4 O H
2+5 C a
3 HP O4
+

3+ AlP O 4 + H

2+ A l

HP O4

When lime is used as Ca source, precipitation normally follows biological treatment. With alum
or iron as precipitant treatment may be affected in the activated sludge operation itself or in a
primary settling basin.