Seminar on Activated Sludge Process

Submitted to: Dr. V.K.Rattan

Submitted by: Girish Gupta ME Chemical 2nd year

Dr. SSB UICET Panjab University

Roll No. 1202

Index
Introduction Types of biological treatment plant Activated Sludge Process Principle of activated sludge process Activated sludge Process Design equation Reference

Secondary Treatment (Biological)

Removal of remaining dissolved or colloidal organic matter Biodegradation of pollutants is allowed to take place in location To promote formation of less offensive oxidized product What engineers do in water treatment plants? Ans. To design capacity of treatment units

Types of Biological Treatments Process

1. 2. Attached Growth Process Suspend Growth Process

1. Attached growth process : microorganisms grow on the surface such as rock or plastics

Example : Open Trickling Filters

Where water is distributed over rocks and trickles down to drain with supplied through vent pipes enclosed bio towers which similar but shaped plastic media instead of rocks called R.B.C

R.B.C
R.B.C. is Rotating Biological Contactors Consists of Large Submerged Disc Rotate continuously to provide microorganisms grows on the disc surface

Suspended Growth Process

Biological Treatment Process based on the growth and retention of a suspension of microorganisms These microorganisms convert biodegradable, organic wastewater constituents and certain inorganic fractions into new cell mass and byproducts, both of which then can be removed by settling, gaseous stripping, and other physical means. Example Activated Sludge Process

Activated Sludge Process

Activated sludge is a process for treating sewage and industrial wastewaters using air and a biological floc composed of bacteria and protozoa Purposes 1. 2. 3. 4. oxidizing carbonaceous biological matter. oxidizing nitrogeneous matter: mainly ammonium and nitrogen in biological matter. removing phosphates. driving off entrained gases such as carbon dioxide, ammonia, nitrogen, etc.

5.
6.

generating a biological floc that is easy to settle.

generating a liquor that is low in dissolved or suspended material.

 Important feature of the AS process is: o Formation of flocculent settleable solids that can be removed by gravity settling Activated Sludge process utilizes:

Fluidized microorganisms
Mixed growth microorganisms Aerobic conditions

Activated sludge process

Activated sludge process is consists of 1. 2. Aeration Tank Settling Tank or Clarifiers

Aeration tank contain sludge which can be described as microbial culture contain Mostly bacteria , Protozoa , Fungi, Algae etc.

Oxygen Supply
Diffused compressed air
Mechanical surface aeration Pure oxygen Purpose of aeration

1. Provides oxygen required for aerobic bio-oxidation

2. Provides sufficient mixing for adequate contact between activated sludge and organic substances

Submersible Aerator/Mixer

Settling tank
Settling tank (usually referred to as "final clarifier" or "secondary settling tank'') to allow the biological flocs (the sludge blanket) to settle, thus separating the biological sludge from the clear treated water.

 Sludge is continuously mixed and aerated by 1. 2. Compressed Air Bubblers along bottom Mechanical Aerators on surface

Process
1. Waste water to be treated enters tanks and mixed with culture which use organic compound for growth producing over microorganisms and for respirators which mostly in formation of CO2 and water To provide biological removal of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous After sufficient aeration time to reach the required level of treatment, the sludge is carried by the flow into the settling tank, or clarifier, which is often of the circular design.

2. 3.

 Note: 1. the success of this process is the formation of a type of culture which will flocculate naturally, producing a settling sludge and a reasonably clear upper, or supernatant layer. 2. If the sludge does not behave this way, a lot of solids will be remain in the water leaving the clarifier, and the quality of the effluent wastewater will be poor.

 The sludge collected at the bottom of then clarifier is then recycled to the aeration tank to consume more organic material. The term "activated" sludge is used, because by the time the sludge is returned to the aeration tank, the microorganisms have been in an environment depleted of "food for some time, and are in a "hungry", or activated condition, eager to get busy biodegrading some more wastes the amount of microorganisms, or biomass, increases as a result of this process, some must be removed on a regular basis for further treatment and disposal, adding to the solids produced in primary treatment.

 The type of activated sludge system that has just been described is a continuous flow process. There is a variation in which the entire activated sludge process take place in a single tank, but at different times. Steps include filling, aerating, settling, drawing off supernatant, etc. A system like this, called a sequencing batch reactor, can provide more flexibility and control over the treatment, including nutrient removal, and is amenable to computer control.)

Activated Sludge Principles

Wastewater is aerated in a tank
Bacteria are encouraged to grow by providing 1. Oxygen 2. Food (BOD) 3. Nutrients Correct temperature

Time

o As bacteria consume BOD, they grow and multiply o o o o Treated wastewater flows into secondary clarifier Bacterial cells settle, removed from clarifier as sludge Part of sludge is recycled back to activated sludge tank, to maintain bacteria population Remainder of sludge is wasted

To design of AS, the following must be determined:

Volume of reactor 1. Number of basins 2. Dimensions of each basin Volume of reactor is determined from: 1. 2. 3. Kinetic relationships Space loading relationships Empirical relationships

Sludge production per day (Xw), kg/day Oxygen required per day (Or), kg/day Final clarifier o Number of basins

Schematic of activated sludge unit

Calculate (R / Q) Ratio
In order to maintain the desired MLSS(Mixed liquid Settle solids) in the aeration tank, R/Q ratio must be calculated
Calculate the Sludge Density Index (SDI)
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Sample MLSS from downstream of aeration tank Determine SS in MLSS Place 1 liter of the MLSS in 1-liter graduate cylinder Settle the sludge for 30 minutes Measure volume occupied by settled sludge Compute SS in settled sludge in mg/l SS represents SDI The test approximates the settling that occurs in final clarifier

If SDI = 10,000 mg/l and MLSS must be 2,500 mg/l Then, Q(0) + R(10,000) = (Q+R)(2500) R/Q = (2500)/(7500) = (1/3) = 33.3 % So, R is 33.3% of feed wastewater (Q)

 Sludge Volume Index (SVI) = 1/ SDI

Is the volume in ml occupied by 1 gram of settled activated sludge It is a measure of settling characteristics of sludge Is between 50 and 150 ml/gm, if process is operated properly

Why Qw?
Microbes utilize organic substances for respiration and synthesis of new cells The net cell production (Qw) must be removed from the system to maintain constant MLSS Qw is usually 1 to 6 % of feed wastewater flowrate (Q)

Kinetics of Microbial Growth

Biochemical reaction Biomass concentration. The concentration of biomass, X (mg/L), increases as a function of time due to conversion of food to biomass: Where m is the specific growth rate constant (d-1). This represents the mass of cells produced/mass of cells per unit of time.

Monod Kinetics
o Growth rate Growth rate constant, , is a function of the substrate concentration, S. o Two constants are used to describe the growth rate m (mg/L) is the maximum growth rate constant (the rate at which the susbtrate concentration is not limiting) Ks is the half-saturation constant (mg/L) (i.e., concentration of S when = m/2

 Biomass production

Where kd represents the endogenous decay rate (d-1) (i.e., microorganism death rate).
Substituting the growth rate constant:

 Substrate utilization

Where Y is the yield factor (mg of biomass produced/mg of food consumed) Y range:
Aerobic: 0.4 - 0.8 mg/mg

 Food to microorganism ratio (F/M)

Represents the daily mass of food supplied to the microbial biomass, X, in the mixed liquor suspended solids, MLSS Units are Kg BOD5/Kg MLSS/day

 Since the hydraulic retention time, q = V/Qo, then

Typical range of F/M ratio in activated sludge units

Treatment Process

F/M Kg BOD5/Kg MLSS/day

Extended aeration

0.03 - 0.8

Conventional

0.8 - 2.0

High rate

> 2.0

Mean Cell Residence Time (qc)

It is defined as:

X = active biological solids in the reactor X = active biological solids in the waste activated sludge flow

Units of qc is days Mean cell residence time is sometimes referred to as sludge age

F/M Ratio and qc

Both parameters are used characterize the performance of the activated sludge process
A high F/M ratio and a low qc produce filamentous growth that have poor settling characteristics A low F/M ratio and a high qc can cause the biological solids to undergo excessive endogenous degradation and cell dispersion

For municipal wastewater

qc should be at least 3 to 4 days If nitrification is required, qc should be at least 10 days

 Relationship between qc and F/M ratio can be derived by starting with the equation of cell production, as follows:

X S Y ke X t t
(X/t) = rate of cell production, mass/time Y = cell yield coefficient, mass cell created/mass substrate removed ke = endogenous decay, mass cells/(total mass cells) (time) X = average cell concentration, mass

 Divide by X

X / t S / t Y ke X X
qc is the average time a cell remains in the system, thus

X qc X / t

 The F/M ratio is the rate of substrate removal per unit weight of the cells, thus

F S / t M X
Thus

F Y ke qc M

 Since F/M was also expressed as:

F S M X t
Then,

S Y ke qc X t 1

Types of Reactors
Plug-flow reactors Dispersed plug-flow reactors Completely-mixed reactors

Plug-flow and Dispersed-flow Reactors

In plug-flow reactors, there is negligible diffusion along the flow path through the reactor In dispersed-flow reactors, there is significant diffusion along the flow path through the reactor Both types of reactors are used in conventional and tapered aeration activated sludge

Conventional Activated Sludge

Rectangular aeration tank
F/M = 0.2 to 0.4 (kg BOD5/kg MLSS-day) Space loading = 0.3 to 0.6 (kg BOD5/day-m3) qc = 5 to 15 (days) Retention time (aeration tank) = 4 to 8 (hours) MLSS = 1500 to 3000 (mg/l) Recycle ratio (R/Q) = 0.25 to 1.0 Plug-flow and Dispersed-flow BOD removal = 85 to 95 (%)

Tapered Aeration
It is a modification of the conventional process F/M = 0.2 to 0.4 (kg BOD5/kg MLSS-day) Space loading = 0.3 to 0.6 (kg BOD5/day-m3) qc = 5 to 15 (days) Retention time (aeration tank) = 4 to 8 (hours) MLSS = 1500 to 3000 (mg/l) Recycle ratio (R/Q) = 0.25 to 1.0 Plug-flow and Dispersed-flow BOD removal = 85 to 95 (%)

Performance

St K Xq e S0
q is the detention time for the plug-flow reactor

The volume of the plug-flow or dispersed-flow reactor is given by:

V (Q R) q

Completely Mixed Reactors

Usually circular and square aeration tanks F/M = 0.1 to 0.6 (kg BOD5/kg MLSS-day) Space loading = 0.8 to 2.0 (kg BOD5/day-m3)

qc = 5 to 30 (days)
Retention time (aeration tank) = 3 to 6 (hours) MLSS = 2500 to 4000 (mg/l) Recycle ratio (R/Q) = 0.25 to 1.5 Completely mixed BOD removal = 85 to 95 (%)

Design parameters for activated sludge processes

Process

q c ( d)
5-15
5-15 5-15 0.2-0.5 5-15

q ( h)
4-8
3-5 3-5 1.5-3 0.5-1 3-6 18-36 0.5-2 1-3

F/M

Qr/Q

X (mg/L)

Conventional
Complete-mix Step-aeration Modifiedaeration Contactstabilization Extendedaeration High-rate aeration Pure-oxygen

0.2-0.4
0.2-0.6 0.2-0.4 1.5-5.0 0.2-0.6

0.25-5
0.25-1 0.25-0.75 0.05-0.15 0.25-1

1,500-3,000
3,000-6,000 2,000-3,500 200 500 1,000-3,000 4,00010,000 3,000-6,000 4,00010,000 6,000-8,000

20-30 5-10 8-20

0.05-0.15 0.4-1.5 0.25-1.0

0.75-1.5 1-5 0.25-0.5

Operational characteristics of activated sludge processes

Process
Conventional Complete-mix Step-aeration

Flow model
Plug-flow Complete-mix Plug-flow

Aeration system
Diffused air, mechanical aerators Diffused air, mechanical aerators Diffused air

BOD5 removal efficiency (%)

85-95 85-95 85-95

Modified-aeration
Contactstabilization Extended-aeration

Plug-flow
Plug-flow Complete-mix

Diffused air
Diffused air, mechanical aerators Diffused air, mechanical aerators

60-75
80-90 75-95

High-rate aeration
Pure-oxygen

Complete-mix
Complete-mix

Diffused air, mechanical aerators

Mechanical aerators

75-90
85-95

Design Parameters
The retention time and reactor volume for completely mixed reactors can be determined by:

Si St q K X St V Q q

Activated Sludge Design Equations

Mass balance of biomass production
Influent biomass + biomass production = effluent biomass + sludge wasted

Substitute biomass production equation

Assume that influent and effluent biomass concentrations are negligible and solve

 Influent substrate + substrate consumed = effluent susbtrate + sludge wasted substrate

Substitute substrate removal equation

Mass balance of food substrate

Assume that no biochemical action takes place in clarifier. Therefore the substrate concentration in the aeration basin is equal to the substrate concentrations in the effluent and the waste activated sludge. Solve:

Overall equations
Combine the mass balance equations for food and biomass:

The cell residence time is: and the hydraulic retention time is,q = V/Qo
Substitute and rearrange:

Compute the F/M ratio

Reference
1. Steilos Rigopoulos , Patrick Linke Systematic development of optimal activated sludge process designs 2. B. Boulkroune, M. Darouach, M. Zasadzinski, S. Gill, D. Fiorelli A nonlinear observer design for an activated sludge wastewater treatment process 3. Domingo E. Boglosa, Jr. ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS BASIC DESIGN AND OPERATIONS 4. S. Deswal, A. Deswal A basic course in Environmental studies 5. A.P. Sincero, G.A Sincero Environmental Engineering A Design Approach

6. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Activated_sludge
7. web.deu.edu.tr/atiksu/toprak/ani4061.html

Thank You