Abstract:Membrane Bio Reactors (MBRs) are mainly used for industrial wastewaters applications where their costs can be more easily afforded. High costs are basically due to energy consumption and membrane cleaning or replacement. Membrane fouling is responsible for reducing treated water production and increasing maintenance as well as operation costs. According to previous researches, the addition of Powdered Activated Carbon (PAC) in high dosages could reduce membrane fouling; but such concentrations are economically… Show more
“…At present, the plant serves seven municipalities with a total population equivalent of 175,000 inhabitants and a significant contribution from industrial activities (around 30% of the total inflow) [13,14]. The plant operates by means of a typical modified Ludzack-Ettinger pre-denitrification process [15][16][17][18], and some layout modifications are under study, also considering the application of new technologies in the future [19].…”
Pollution control of surface water bodies requires stringent checks on wastewater treatment plants performances. The satisfactory operation of biological treatment, commonly performed by means of activated sludge processes, requires a number of controlling and monitoring procedures. Suitable respirometric techniques for the determination of the kinetic parameters that regulate biological processes have been implemented in order to achieve this aim. This paper describes the results of an experimental research carried out in a conventional Italian municipal wastewater treatment plant. Particularly, the research has been finalized to both evaluate the biological process for the removal of biodegradable pollutants, such as carbonaceous substrates and ammonia nitrogen, and to collect data in order to evaluate a possible plant upgrade. Heterotrophic and autotrophic biomass kinetic parameters have been examined using respirometric techniques based on oxygen uptake measurements. The research performed makes a OPEN ACCESS Sustainability 2014, 6 1834 valuable contribution toward verifying the reliability of the values proposed in the literature for some kinetic parameters, which have been commonly used for a long time.
“…At present, the plant serves seven municipalities with a total population equivalent of 175,000 inhabitants and a significant contribution from industrial activities (around 30% of the total inflow) [13,14]. The plant operates by means of a typical modified Ludzack-Ettinger pre-denitrification process [15][16][17][18], and some layout modifications are under study, also considering the application of new technologies in the future [19].…”
Pollution control of surface water bodies requires stringent checks on wastewater treatment plants performances. The satisfactory operation of biological treatment, commonly performed by means of activated sludge processes, requires a number of controlling and monitoring procedures. Suitable respirometric techniques for the determination of the kinetic parameters that regulate biological processes have been implemented in order to achieve this aim. This paper describes the results of an experimental research carried out in a conventional Italian municipal wastewater treatment plant. Particularly, the research has been finalized to both evaluate the biological process for the removal of biodegradable pollutants, such as carbonaceous substrates and ammonia nitrogen, and to collect data in order to evaluate a possible plant upgrade. Heterotrophic and autotrophic biomass kinetic parameters have been examined using respirometric techniques based on oxygen uptake measurements. The research performed makes a OPEN ACCESS Sustainability 2014, 6 1834 valuable contribution toward verifying the reliability of the values proposed in the literature for some kinetic parameters, which have been commonly used for a long time.
“…It is generally accepted that technologies such as membrane bioreactor (MBR), ozonation and advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) appear more efficient in eliminating pharmaceutical residues than conventional AS processes [40].…”
Abstract:The presence of emerging organic micropollutants (such as pharmaceuticals) in sewage has been, for a long time, an issue of great concern within the international scientific debate. This item represents one of the main challenges related to a sustainable development, with particular concern to the public health control. While most of the work has been concentrated on their detection and the evaluation of their average level, little is known about the spatial and temporal variability of concentrations of these compounds in the effluent and its capability to affect the concentrations in time of the receiving water body. In this study, three sampling campaigns were carried out at two different wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in Varese area (Northern Italy) with the aim of monitoring the occurrence of some pharmaceuticals to evaluate their removal efficiency. The detected pharmaceuticals were: Ofloxacin, Ibuprofen, Atenolol, Bezafibrate, Carbamazepine, Salbutamol, Cyclophosphamide and Hydrochlorothiazide. The results obtained, together with the analysis of the characteristics of the chemicals and of the two WWTPs, allowed evaluating the factors affecting the spatial and temporal concentration variability in effluent waters and the potential influence of this variability in driving the exposure of the aquatic ecosystems in the receiving water body.
“…There are many applied research studies aimed at identifying new technologies for improving the existing WWTPs and their performance in terms of removal [31][32][33][34][35]; however, in this case we made simple and realistic assumptions starting from the current state of the WWTPs in the study area. We hypothesized making improvements only in large towns and cities, according to the rules listed below (RE: removal efficiency, c: collecting system): css2022 = css2001 + 30% and max(css2022) An alternative scenario (S1) provides for the extension of the sewage system coverage.…”
Section: Impacts On Water Quality and Possible Technological Responsesmentioning
The paper presents both the structure and application of a Decision Support System (DSS) for an important river in Brazil-along with the sustainable management of its watershed. This DSS assesses both surface-water quality and riverine microhabitats in terms of future scenarios, taking into account regulation limits and appropriate quality indexes. Our future scenarios consider: (a) population and climate change trends; (b) upgrade of sewage systems and wastewater treatment plants; and (c) withdrawal management from rivers and reservoirs. We use some main types of interrelated models, which can simulate different aspects of the responses of a basin, with respect to different modes of use of the water resource. In particular, the surface-water quality models simulate total phosphorus, BOD, dissolved oxygen concentration and thermo-tolerant coliform bacteria pollution. The riverine microhabitat models apply habitat suitability indexes of autochthonous fish species considering water depth, velocity, bottom substrate and dissolved oxygen. Both models are based on hydrologic and hydraulic models results and both were calibrated using discharge and water quality measurements collected over a 1.5-year monitoring period. Our pre-and post-processing are based on common spreadsheets and the output data are spatially analyzed using GIS software. Examples are also shown of how the DSS can contribute to developing a sustainable use of the basin resources, including a reservoir used to supply drinking water to the capital city (Salvador da Bahia).
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