Comparison and modeling of two biofilm processes applied to decentralized wastewater treatment

In order to control water pollution in the rapidly urbanizing South China area,biological contact oxidation(BCO)process and biological aerated filter(BAF)process were applied in a pilot-scale experiment for decentralized wastewater treatment.An investigation to find the optimal parameters of the two biofilm systems was conducted on hydraulic loading,organic loading,and aeration rate.The results indicated that the water reuse criteria required a maximum hydraulic and organic loading of 30.0 m^(3)/(m^(2)·d)and 4.0 kg COD/(m^(3)·d),respectively,as well as a minimum effluent DO of 4.0 mg/L.The utilization of a new media allowed BAF to perform better than BCO.The kinetic description of the COD removal process for BAF and BCO are Se=S0e^(-0.639t)/(1+1.035t),and S_(e)=S_(0)/[(1+0.947t)(1+1.242t)],respectively.The correlativity analysis showed that the two models could predict the effluent water quality based on the hydraulic retention time.Thus,the appropriate hydraulic loading for certain effluent water quality demands could be determined.The two models could be applied to wastewater treatment practice.

Suitability Evaluation for the Construction of Decentralized Wastewater Reclamation Facilities in Beijing

水资源的缺乏使越来越多的城市和城区开始使用中水作为额外的经济合理的供水水源,并为此制定相应政策。然而,不适宜的中水利用政策往往对用水户使用再生水产生不利影响。本研究目的在于评价中水设施建设适宜性并分析不同行业的中水利用适宜情况,为制定或修订中水利用政策提供参考。本研究以北京市为研究区,在中水生产成本影响因素分析基础上,得到了中水设施建设限制因素和中水设施建设适宜条件,并对北京市机关、高校、饭店的用水户进行了适宜性评价。本研究结果表明,运行水量对中水生产成本有决定性影响。有效原水量对应的给水量、有效中水需求量、建筑面积适合作为中水设施建设影响因素,它们的下限可作为中水设施建设适宜条件。本研究通过分析北京市部分机关、高校、饭店用水户的用水情况,得到这些行业的中水设施建设适宜条件,并用于适宜性评价。评价结果表明,大部分机关用水户和大部分一、二星级饭店不适宜建设中水设施,而大部分高校和大部分三星级以上饭店适宜建设中水设施。

Full-scale application and performance of a new multi-self-reflow decentralized Wastewater treatment device: Impact of hydraulic and pollutant loads

Decentralized treatment of wastewater in rural areas usually has several challenges,which include large fluctuations in pollutant concentration and water quantity,complicated operation and maintenance of conventional biochemical treatment equipment,resulting in poor stability and a low compliance rate of the wastewater treatment process.In order to solve the above problems,a new integration reactor is designed,which uses gravity and aeration tail gas self-reflux technology to realize the reflux of sludge and the nitrification liquid,respectively.The feasibility and operation characteristics of its application for decentralized wastewater treatment in rural areas are explored.The results demonstrated that,under constant influent,the device showed strong tolerance to the shock of pollutant load.The chemical oxygen demand,NH_(4)^(+)-N,total nitrogen and total phosphorus fluctuated in the ranges of 95–715 mg/L,7.6–38.5 mg/L,9.32–40.3 mg/L and 0.84–4.9 mg/L,respectively.The corresponding effluent compliance rates were 82.1%,92.8%,96.4%and 96.3%,respectively.When the wastewater discharge was non-constant and the maximum single-day Qmax/Qmin reached 5,all indicators of the effluent met the relevant discharge standard.The integrated device also demonstrated high phosphorus enrichment levels in its anaerobic zone;the concentration of phosphorus reached a maximum of 26.9 mg/L,which created a good environment for phosphorus removal.The microbial community analysis showed that sludge digestion,denitrification,and phosphorus-accumulating bacteria all played an important role in pollutant treatment.

Mechanistic insight into the biofilm formation and process performance of a passive aeration ditch(PAD)for decentralized wastewater treatment

Decentralized wastewater containing elevated salinity is an emerging threat to the local environment and sanitation in remote coastal communities.Regarding the cost and treatment efficiencies,we propose a passive aeration ditch(PAD)using non-woven polyester fabric as a feasible bubbleless aerator and biofilm carrier for wastewater treatment.Consideration has been first given to PAD’s efficacy in treating saline decentralized wastewater,and then to the impact of chemical oxygen demand-to-nitrogen(C/N)ratio and salinity on biofilm formation.A multispecies model incorporating the salinity effect has been developed to depict the system performance and predict the microbial community.Results showed that the PAD system had great capacity for pollutants removal.The biofilm thickness increased at a higher C/N ratio because of the boost of aerobic heterotrophs and denitrifying bacteria,which consequently improved the COD and total nitrogen removal.However,this led to the deterioration of ammonia removal.Moreover,while a higher salinity benefited the biofilm growth,the contaminant removal efficiencies decreased because the salinity inhibited the activity of aerobic heterotrophs and reduced the abundance of nitrifying bacteria inside the biofilm.Based on the model simulation,feed water with salinity below 2%and C/N ratio in a range of 1 to 3 forms a biofilm that can reach relatively high organic matter and ammonia removal.These findings not only show the feasibility of PAD in treatment of saline decentralized wastewater,but also offer a systematic strategy to predict and optimize the process performance.

Greywater reuse as a key enabler for improving urban wastewater management

Sustainable water management is essential to guaranteeing access to safe water and addressing the challenges posed by climate change,urbanization,and population growth.In a typical household,greywater,which includes everything but toilet waste,constitutes 50e80%of daily wastewater generation and is characterized by low organic strength and high volume.This can be an issue for large urban wastewater treatment plants designed for high-strength operations.Segregation of greywater at the source for decentralized wastewater treatment is therefore necessary for its proper management using separate treatment strategies.Greywater reuse may thus lead to increased resilience and adaptability of local water systems,reduction in transport costs,and achievement of fit-for-purpose reuse.After covering greywater characteristics,we present an overview of existing and upcoming technologies for greywater treatment.Biological treatment technologies,such as nature-based technologies,biofilm technologies,and membrane bioreactors(MBR),conjugate with physicochemical treatment methods,such as membrane filtration,sorption and ion exchange technologies,and ultraviolet(UV)disinfection,may be able to produce treated water within the allowable parameters for reuse.We also provide a novel way to tackle challenges like the demographic variance of greywater quality,lack of a legal framework for greywater management,monitoring and control systems,and the consumer perspective on greywater reuse.Finally,benefits,such as the potential water and energy savings and sustainable future of greywater reuse in an urban context,are discussed.