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WATER TREATMENT

BASIC KNOWLEDGE

THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT


In a wastewater treatment plant, domestic wastewater is
treated to enable it to be discharged back into a watercourse.
The wastewater produced by private households is polluted
largely by dissolved biodegradable substances. A wastewater treatment plant is essentially divided into the following
sections:
Mechanical treatment
Biological treatment
Sludge treatment
Depending on the properties of the wastewater and the
treated water quality requirements, further steps may be
necessary, such as removal of phosphates.

Mechanical treatment

Biological treatment

In the first stage, suspended solids are


mechanically removed from the wastewater.
Initially, course materials such as pieces of
wood, plastic bags and fabric are filtered out
using a bar screen. Then the water flows into
a grit chamber. In this sedimentation tank,
mineral solids such as sand and gravel are
separated by sedimentation.
Organic solids have a much lower settling
velocity than sand and, consequently, a low
velocity sedimentation step is required to
separate them. This process stage is termed
primary clarification and the solids which
separate at this stage are termed primary
sludge.

Mechanical treatment is followed by


biological treatment of the wastewater.
The principle of biological treatment is
the fact that microorganisms use the
organic matter as a source of nutrition.
In this way, they degrade the organic
matter and remove it from the wastewater. The most frequently used method
is the activated sludge process. In this
process, organic matter is degraded by
aerobic micro-organisms. In order to
provide them with the necessary oxygen,
the wastewater is aerated in the aeration tank. The products of the aerobic metabolism are biomass, water and
carbon dioxide. The growing microorganisms form flocs the so called activated sludge which are continuously
removed from the aeration tank together
with the wastewater.

Primary components of a wastewater treatment plant

Aeration tank

The activated sludge is separated, by


means of sedimentation in the secondary clarifier. The treated water contains
only small amounts of organic matter,
and can be safely discharged into watercourse (receiving water).
More biomass is removed from the aeration tank than is produced in the same
period of time. In order to balance out
this loss of biomass in the aeration
tank, part of the sludge separated in
the secondary clarifier is returned to the
aeration tank as return sludge.
Sludge treatment

How a wastewater treatment plant works:

The portion of the activated sludge


which is not returned is termed surplus
sludge. Together with the primary sludge
from the primary clarification, it forms
the sewage sludge. Sewage sludge is a
waste product, and is treated by further
processes.

Secondary clarifier

Mechanical treatment
1 bar screen, 2 grit chamber, 3 primary clarifier, 4 primary sludge
Biological treatment
5 aeration tank, 6 secondary clarifier, 7 return sludge, 8 surplus sludge
A wastewater, B compressed air, C receiving water, D sewage sludge

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