Full-Scale Implementation of a Vertical Membrane Bioreactor for Simultaneous Removal of Organic Matter and Nutrients from Municipal Wastewater

Abstract

Abstract:In nutrient-sensitive estuaries, wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are required to implement more advanced treatment methods in order to meet increasingly stringent effluent guidelines for organic matter and nutrients. To comply with current and anticipated water quality regulations and to reduce the volume of produced sludge, we have successfully developed a vertical membrane bioreactor (VMBR) that is composed of anoxic (lower layer) and oxic (upper layer) zones in one reactor. Since 2009, the VMBR has been commercialized (Q = 1100-16,000 m 3 /d) under the trade-name of DMBR TM for recycling of municipal wastewater in South Korea. In this study, we explore the performance and stability of the full-scale systems. As a result, it was found that the DMBR TM systems showed excellent removal efficiencies of organic substances, suspended solids (SS) and Escherichia coli (E. coli). Moreover, average removal efficiencies of total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus

Modeling, simulation and control of biological and chemical P-removal processes for membrane bioreactors (MBRs) from lab to full-scale applications: State of the art

“…The chemical precipitation processes can enhance the treatment efficiency of the biological WWTPs (Adam et al, 2003;Henze et al, 2008). However, it has the disadvantages of high chemical costs, chemical handling, storage requirements, increased chemically enriched sludge production, and subsequent sludge handling and disposal costs (Bunce et al, 2018;Chae et al, 2015). Stringent regulatory pressure and tight discharge limits have forced the WWTPs manufacturers and operators to develop and deploy efficient technologies to reduce the phosphorous discharge into water bodies (Gu et al, 2011;Vohla et al, 2011;Wadood and Sarmad, 2012).…”

“…The addition of metal salt (i.e. FeCl 3 ) resulted in 89%-97% P-removal efficiency and produced more sludge (Chae et al, 2015). In a lab-scale investigation (Sun et al, 2019), the addition of metal salt (20 mgL −1 of Al 2 (SO 4 ) 2 ) resulted in achieving over 90% P-removal and reduced TMP (from 11.3kPad −1 to 0,57kPad −1 ) due to a decline in EPS concentrations and accumulation of particles on the membrane surface and increase in the particle size.…”

Review on Water Resources Management and Key Threats in Rwanda, East Africa

“…However, these urban dwellers' water demand and the source of water used are still unknown (McDonald et al, 2014, Barthel, Banzhaf, 2016. Moreover, estimates show that 22% of the world water is used by industries, while their improper wastewater management is polluting water quality (Chae et al, 2015;Ouyang et al, 2006;Maharjan et al, 2016). This lack of proper determination of water sources used and improper wastes management affects its quantity and quality management.…”