1 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

INTRODUCTON

Anaerobic treatment is now becoming a popular treatment

method for industrial wastewater, because of its
effectiveness in treating high strength wastewater and
because of its economic advantages.

Developed in the Netherlands in the late seventies (1976-

1980) by Prof. Gatze Lettinga - Wageningen University,
UASB (Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Bed) reactor was
originally used for treating wastewater from sugar
refining, breweries and beverage industry, distilleries and
fermentation industry, food industry, pulp and paper
industry.

In recent times the applications for this technology are

expanding to include treatment of chemical and
petrochemical industry effluents, textile industry
wastewater, landfill leachates, as well as applications
directed at conversions in the sulfur cycle and removal of
metals. Furthermore, in warm climates the UASB concept
is also suitable for treatment of domestic wastewater.
2 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

In recent years, the number of anaerobic reactors in the

world is increasing rapidly and about 72% consist of
reactors based on the UASB and EGSB technologies.
3 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Figure 1. Essential Components of an UASB Reactor

UASB:
4 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Anaerobic granular sludge bed technology refers to a

special kind of reactor concept for the "high rate"
anaerobic treatment of wastewater. The concept was
initiated with upward-flow anaerobic sludge blanket
(UASB) reactor. . From a hardware perspective, a UASB
reactor is at first appearance nothing more than an empty
tank (thus an extremely simple and inexpensive design).
Wastewater is distributed into the tank at appropriately
spaced inlets. The wastewater passes upwards through an
anaerobic sludge bed where the microorganisms in the
sludge come into contact with wastewater-substrates. The
sludge bed is composed of microorganisms that naturally
form granules (pellets) of 0.5 to 2 mm diameter that have
a high sedimentation velocity and thus resist wash-out
from the system even at high hydraulic loads. The
resulting anaerobic degradation process typically is
responsible for the production of gas (e.g. biogas
containing CH4 and CO2). The upward motion of released
gas bubbles causes hydraulic turbulence that provides
reactor mixing without any mechanical parts. At the top
of the reactor, the water phase is separated from sludge
5 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

solids and gas in a three-phase separator (also known the

gas-liquid-solids separator). The three-phase-separator is
commonly a gas cap with a settler situated above it.
Below the opening of the gas cap, baffles are used to
deflect gas to the gas-cap opening.

Brief History UASB:

6 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

The UASB process was developed by Dr. Gatze

Lettinga) and colleagues in the late 1970's at the
Wageningen University (The Netherlands). Inspired by
publications of Dr, Perry McCarty (from Stanford, USA),
Lettinga's team was experimenting with an anaerobic
filter concept. The anaerobic filter (AF) is a high rate
anaerobic reactor in which biomass is immobilized on an
inert porous support material. During experiments with
the AF, Lettinga had observed that in addition to biomass
attached on the support material, a large proportion of the
biomass developed into free granular aggregates. The
UASB concept crystallized during a trip Gatze Lettinga
made to South Africa, where he observed at an anaerobic
plant treating wine vinasse, that sludge was developing
into compact granules. The reactor design of the plant he
was visiting was a "clarigestor", which can be viewed as
an ancestor to the UASB. The upper part of the
"clarigestor" reactor design has a clarifier but no gas cap

Birth of UASB:
7 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

The UASB concept was born out of the recognition that

inert support material for biomass attachment was not
necessary to retain high levels of active sludge in the
reactor. Instead the UASB concept relies on high levels of
biomass retention through the formation of sludge
granules. When the UASB concept was developed,
Lettinga took into account the need to encourage the
accumulation of granular sludge and discourage the
accumulation of disperse sludge in the reactor. The main
features for achieving granular sludge development are
firstly to maintain an upward-flow regime in the reactor
selecting for microorganisms that aggregate and secondly
to provide for adequate separation of solids, liquid and
gas, preventing washout of sludge granules.

First UASB:
8 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

The UASB reactor concept was rapidly developed into

technology, the first pilot plant was installed at a beet
sugar refinery in The Netherlands (CSM suiker).
Thereafter a large number of full-scale plants were
installed throughout the Netherlands at sugar refineries,
potato starch processing plants, and other food industries
as well as recycle paper plants. The first publications on
the UASB design concept appeared in Dutch language
technical journals in the late 1970's and the first
international publication appeared in 1980 .

Advantages of the UASB reactor:

9 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Modular system
Worldwide availability
Corrosion free design
Ten years guarantee
Fully accessible for inspection and cleaning
Closed system
No odour emission
Limited reactor height

Charasteristics of the UASB:

10 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

The UASB design is a modular system that allows for a

tailor made approach to suit each process design and local
circumstances. The prefabricated three phase separator in
the top of the reactor is designed of synthetic material and
virtually unaffected by anaerobic conventions. This
ensures an extended life span compared to conventional
steel designs. The compact settler module has excellent
abilities to separate gas, water and granular sludge
efficiently under various conditions.

Anaerobic Processes in the UASB Reactor:

11 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

There are 4 phases of anaerobic digestion in an UASB

reactor

 Hydrolysis, where enzymes excreted by fermentative

bacteria convert complex, heavy, un-dissolved
materials (proteins, carbohydrates, fats) into less
complex, lighter, materials (amino acids, sugars,
alcohols...).
 Acidogenesis, where dissolved compounds are
converted into simple compounds, (volatile fatty-
acids, alcohols, lactic acid, CO2, H2, NH3, H2S ) and
new cell-matter.
 Acetogenesis, where digestion products are converted
into acetate, H2, CO2 and new cell-matter.
 Methanogenesis, where acetate, hydrogen plus
carbonate, formate or methanol are converted into
CH4, CO2 and new cell-matter.

Specifics of the UASB Reactor:

12 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

When comparing with other anaerobic reactors, we

conclude that the differences as well as the specifics of an
UASB are existence of granules sludge and internal three-
phase GSL device (gas/sludge/liquid separator system)

Granules sludge:

In an UASB reactor, anaerobic sludge has or acquires

good sedimentation properties, and is mechanically mixed
by the up-flow forces of the incoming wastewater and the
gas bubbles being generated in the

Reactor:
13 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

For that reason mechanical mixing can be omitted from

an UASB reactor thus reducing capital and maintenance
costs. This mixing process also encourages the formation
of sludge
granules.

Figure 2.
Shape and
size of granules
sludge

The sludge granules have many advantages over

conventional sludge flocs:

 Dense compact bio-film

 High settle-ability (30-80 m/h)
 High mechanical strength
 Balanced microbial community
 Syntrophic partners closely associated
 High methanogenic activity (0.5 to 2.0 g COD/g
VSS.d)
 Resistance to toxic shock
14 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Internal three-phase GSL device: Installed at the top of

the tank, the GSL device constitutes an essential part of
an UASB reactor with following functions:

 To collect, separate and discharge the biogas formed.

 To reduce liquid turbulences, resulting from the gas
production, in the settling compartment.
 To allow sludge particles to separate by
sedimentation, flocculation or entrapment in the
sludge blanket.
 To limit expansion of the sludge bed in the digester
compartment.
 To reduce or prevent the carry-over of sludge
particles from the system.

UASB Process

Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor has

been successfully used to treat variety of industrial as well
as domestic wastewaters. The UASB reactor can be
15 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

briefly described as a system in which substrate passes

first through an expanded sludge bed containing a high
concentration of biomass. The sludge in the reactor may
exist in granular or flocculent form, but the granular
sludge offers advantages over flocculent sludge. Most of
the substrate removal takes place in sludge bed. The
remaining portion of the substrate passes through a less
dense biomass, called the sludge blanket.

Provision of sufficient volume of sludge blanket is

necessary above the sludge bed, which will provide
further treatment to the wastewater bye-passed from the
sludge bed due to channeling, and will help in
maintaining stable effluent quality. Above sludge blanket
the reactor has a three-phase separator, Gas-Liquid-Solid
(GLS), which separates the solid particles from the liquid
and gas, allowing liquid and gas to leave the system.

Proper design of this device is necessary to retain

maximum sludge in the reactor to affirm high Solid
Retention Time (SRT), about 50 to 100 days or more, and
to facilitate treatment with short Hydraulic Retention
16 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Time (HRT). In general, the sludge bed occupies 30 to

60% of the total reactor volume, 20 to 30% of the total
volume is provided for sludge blanket and GLS separator
occupies remaining 15 to 30% of the total volume.

The design of the UASB reactor is carried out taking in to

consideration the applicable loading rates, such as,
hydraulic loading rate considering limitations of
superficial liquid upflow velocity and Organic Loading
Rate (OLR). The reactor volume is worked out to suit
desired range of loading, and height and plan area are
finalised considering upflow velocity. With this approach
in design, it may not be always possible to accommodate
the desired range of Sludge Loading Rate (SLR) due to
limitation of sludge bed volume. Also, it may not be
always possible to accommodate the GLS separator
device, with dimensions required for providing sufficient
area for gas-water interface, for settling, and for aperture
at the bottom of GLS device to avoid excessive liquid
inlet velocities in the settler. The schematic diagram of
UASB reactor is presented in Figure 2.
17 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Figure 2. Schematic diagram of UASB reactor

Under certain situation e.g., for low COD concentration

of the wastewater (about 500 mg/L) and under very high
COD concentration of the wastewater (10,000 mg/L), the
dimensions required for the GLS separator may govern
the overall dimensions of the reactor. Hence, it is
necessary to give due consideration for the dimensions of
the GLS separator required, while designing the UASB
reactor. With these objectives this article aims to discuss
range of parameters recommended for design of the
reactor and to illustrate the design procedure.
18 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

UASB Design calculation:

In general, there are two ways to design an UASB
reactor
If input COD: 5,000 - 15,000 mg/l or more, the design
method should be used based on Organic Loading rate,
(OLR) If input COD < 5000 mg/l, the design method
should be calculated based on velocity.
Calculation UASB Tank Base on OLR
If input COD: 5,000 - 15,000 mg/lwith Organic loading
rate ORL: 4 - 12 kg COD/m3.dand Hydraulic retention
time HRT: 4 - 12 h
COD treatment efficiency: E = (CODinput –
CODoutput)/CODinput
In Calculation, Percent of COD removal is 75 - 85 %
Organic loading rate ORL = Q (CODinput –
CODoutput) * 103
Volume of tank W = C * Q / OLR = (kg COD/m3 *
m3/h) / (kg COD/m3.h)
C: concentration of COD in wastewaterQ: flow rate of
19 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

wastewater

H (m) the height of tank can be calculated by: H = HS +

HSe
The height of sludge layer Hs is: Hs = V * HRT
where Hs: the height of sludge layer area (main reactor)
and Hse: the height of sedimentation areaWhere V =
Velocity of flow 0.6 to 0.9 m/hHRT = Hydraulic
retention time (h)
In general, the height of sludge layer will be chosen in
Table 1:
Table 1. Sludge Layer Height Selection COD input
Sludge layer height <> 3000 mg/l 5 – 7 m Note: Sludge
layer is longer than sludge bed layer
The height of setting area HSe ≥ 1.2 m and
The area surface of an UASB tank (m2):

A = HRT * Q / H
20 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Figure 3. A typical model of an UASB design

Calculating an UASB Tank Based on Velocity

When input COD < 5,000 mg/l, using the method base
on ORL is not effective in operation process because
the granular sludge will be hardly formed. Therefore
the design criteria must be:
Up-flow velocity V Ј 0,5 m/h. Hydraulic retention time
HRT і 4 h Chosen in table 1, the height of sludge is Hs
21 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

= 3 – 5 m The height of setting area HSe і 1.2 m The

volume of the UASB reactor: W = Q x HRTThe area of
the UASB reactor: A = V / Q.
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23 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Design Procedure For UASB Reactor:

The UASB reactor can be designed as circular or

rectangular. Modular design can be preferred when the
volume of reactor exceeds about 400 m3. It is necessary
to select proper range of operating parameters for design,
such as, OLR, SLR, superficial liquid upflow velocity
(referred as liquid upflow velocity), and HRT. The
literature recommendations for all these parameters and
design procedure to account these recommendations are
given below.

Organic Concentration and Loading:

For COD concentration in the range 2 to 5 g/L, the

performance of the reactor depends upon the loading rate
and is independent of influent substrate concentration.
For COD concentration greater than 5 g/L, it is
recommended to dilute the wastewater to about 2 g COD/
L during primary start-up of the reactor. Once, the
primary start-up of the reactor is over with granulation of
sludge, loading rates can be increased in steps to bring the
24 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

actual COD concentration of the wastewater. The loading

above 1 - 2 kg COD/ m3.d is essential for proper
functioning of the reactor.

For primary start-up the optimal loading rates for getting

high COD removal efficiency (about 90%) within short
start-up time, coupled with generation of good quality
granular sludge, are OLR between 2.0 and 3.6 kg COD/
m3.d and SLR between 0.15 and 0.25 kg COD/ kg
VSS.d. The OLR to be used for design of UASB reactor
for different temperature is provided by Lettinga and
Hulshoff. In general, for temperature between 15 and 35
degrees C, the reactor can be designed for loading
between 1.5 to 18 kg COD/ m3.d. Lower OLR should be
preferred for low temperature and higher OLR can be
adopted for high temperature.

For sewage treatment, the design of reactor at higher

loading rate is not possible due to limitations of upflow
velocity, and maximum loading of about 2 to 3 kg
COD/m3.d can be adopted for design. Similarly, for high
strength wastewater, such as distillery, satisfying
25 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

minimum velocity criteria and maximum HRT limit is

difficult. Therefore, categorization of wastewater based
on COD concentration was observed to be necessary for
generalizing the design procedure of UASB reactor to
meet the recommended operating conditions to the
maximum extent. Thus, the COD concentration of the
wastewater is suitably divided in four categories.

It has been proposed to adopt loading conditions as

recommended in the Table 1, for design of UASB reactor
depending on the average COD concentration of the raw
wastewater. These loading rates recommended are
suitable for temperature about 30 degrees C. For higher
temperature, the loading rates can be slightly increased
and for low temperature these design loading rates can be
reduced.
26 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Table 1. Recommended loading range for design of

UASB reactor
based on COD concentration at average flow

Reactor Volume:

Based on the higher suitable value of OLR, for given

COD concentration, the volume of reactor required is to
be worked out as:

Volume = (Flow Rate x COD concentration) / OLR

For the suitable SLR values for that COD range (Table 1),
the volume of sludge required can be worked out
considering the average concentration of VSS between 25
and 35 g/L for medium and high strength wastewater, and
27 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

15 to 25 g/L for low strength wastewater. This volume of

sludge should be less than 50% of the reactor volume,
worked out based on OLR, to avoid overloading of the
reactor with respect to SLR. If the volume is not meeting
the requirements, the OLR can be reduced to increase the
volume. The volume of the reactor is thus, finalized to
meet both the requirements. For this volume, the HRT
should not be allowed to be less than 6 h for any type of
wastewater and generally, it should be less than 18 h to
reduce volume and hence, cost of the reactor. For very
high strength of the wastewater, COD greater than 10,000
mg/L, it may not be possible to meet this requirement,
hence, under such situation the HRT may be allowed to
exceed even 24 h and as high as 200 h.

Superficial Liquid Upflow Velocity:

Higher upflow velocities, favors better selective process

for the sludge and improve mixing in the reactor.
However, at very high upflow velocity, greater than1.0 to
1.5 m/h, the inoculum may get washed out during start-up
or during normal operation granules may get
28 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

disintegrated, and the resulting fragments can easily wash

out of the reactor. The maximum liquid upflow velocity
allowed in design should not exceed 1.2 – 1.5 m/h.
Upflow velocities as 0.25 to 0.8 m/h are favorable for
granule growth and accumulation, during normal
operation of the reactor and maximum upflow velocity up
to 1.5 m/h at peak flow conditions for short duration can
be used in design.

Reactor Height and Area:

The reactor should be as high as possible to reduce plan

area and to reduce cost of land, GLS device, and influent
distribution arrangement. The height should be sufficient
to provide enough sludge bed height to avoid channeling
and to keep liquid upflow velocity within maximum
permissible limits. In order to minimize channeling the
minimum height of the sludge bed should be about 1.5 to
2.5 m. For this reason, the minimum height of the reactor
should be restricted to 4.0 m, to conveniently
accommodate sludge bed, sludge blanket and GLS
separator. The maximum height of the reactor can be
29 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

about 8 m. The height of the reactor adopted in practice

is usually between 4.5 and 6 m.

While designing, initially suitable height of the reactor

(about 6m) can be chosen, and superficial liquid upflow
velocity is to be worked out as height/ HRT. It is
recommended to adopt upflow velocity of 0.7 m/h at
average flow and 1.0 m/h to 1.2m/h at peak flow.
Accordingly, if the upflow velocity exceeds the maximum
limits height of the reactor can be reduced in steps up to
minimum of 4 to 4.5 m. If this is not possible in the
applicable range of height, HRT shall be modified and
fresh reactor volume and OLR shall be worked out. For
low strength wastewater, the maximum liquid upflow
velocity becomes limiting and for very high strength
wastewater very low velocity (less than 0.1 m/h) is
required while designing the UASB reactor. Under
certain situations, the revised OLR may be less than the
initial OLR recommended. It is advisable to allow
lowering of OLR in such situations to control upflow
30 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

velocity in the reactor for proper performance of the

reactor.

After these iterations for volume and height, the plan area
can be worked out and suitable dimensions of the reactor
can be adopted. Generally, the maximum diameter or
side length of single reactor should be kept less than 20
m. Before finalizing the dimensions of the reactors, it is
necessary to consider the dimensions required for GLS
separator, because to accommodate the GLS separator
meeting all requirements, it may be necessary to alter
height and plan area of the reactor.

Gas-Liquid-Solid (GLS) Separator:

In order to achieve highest possible sludge hold up under

operational conditions, it is necessary to equip the UASB
reactor with a GLS separator device. The main objective
of this design is to facilitate the sludge return without help
of any external energy and control device. The guidelines
for shapes and design of GLS separator are given by
Lettinga and Hulshoff. The GLS should be designed to
31 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

meet the requirements such as, provision of enough gas-

water interface inside the gas dome, sufficient settling
area out side the dome to control surface overflow rate;
and sufficient aperture opening at bottom to avoid
turbulence due to high inlet velocity of liquid in the
settler, to allow proper return of solid back to the reactor.
Due attention has to be paid to the geometry of the unit
and its hydraulics, to ensure proper working of the GLS
separator.

Design of GLS separator:

The shape of the GLS device considered in design is

presented in Figure 3. The gas-water interface inside the
dome is considered at the depth Dh from top of the dome.
In the beginning, the height of GLS separator can be
considered as 25% of the total reactor height. For
estimating initially the number of domes required the
angle of dome with horizontal can be assumed as 45o, and
base width of dome (Wb) can be calculated as 2(h+Dh)/
tan q. The Dh is to be calculated as (Wt/2) tan q, and
initially the top width (Wt) can be considered as 0.2 to 0.3
32 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

m. The number of domes required for given diameter (or

width for rectangular reactor) can be calculated by
dividing width or diameter by WB, and rounding this
number. Where, WB=Wb+Wa, and Wa can be
considered as 0.2 m initially. After deciding the number
of domes, the flow rate shared by each dome, is to be
estimated in proportion to the base area of each dome,
including aperture width, to the total area of the reactor.

Aperture width at bottom of gas dome: The area of

aperture (Ap) required can be computed based on the
maximum inlet velocity of liquid to be allowed. This area
can be estimated as flow rate per dome for rectangular
reactor (or central dome in case of circular) divided by
maximum velocity to be allowed. The maximum inlet
velocity of 3 m/h is safe for medium and high strength
wastewater and for low strength the inlet velocity less
than 2.0 m/h should be preferred. The width of aperture
(Wa) is to be calculated as aperture area divided by length
(or in case of circular reactor by diameter) of the reactor.
It is recommended to use minimum aperture width of 0.2
33 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

m and if the width required is greater than 0.5 m, then

increase the number of dome by one and repeat earlier
steps till it is less than 0.5 m.

Figure 3. Details of the Gas-Liquid-Solid (GLS)

Separator

Width at gas-water interface: The gas production

expected in the reactor can be estimated based on the
OLR selected for the design and expected COD removal
efficiency in the range 70 to 90 percent. The gas
production can be estimated as 0.35 m3 /kg COD
removed at ambient temperature. From this gas
production the biogas collection per dome is to be worked
out in proportion with percentage of area covered by the
dome. The biogas loading at gas-water interface can be
34 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

calculated as gas collection per dome divided by product

of top width of gas collector (Wt) and length of the
reactor (diameter, in case of circular reactor). The
loading of biogas at gas-water interface should be kept
less than 80 m3 gas/ m2.d (about 3 m/h). Initially the top
width can be assumed as 0.3 m and for this width if the
biogas loading is less than 3.0 m/h then adopt 0.3 m as top
width.

If the biogas loading is greater than 3.0 m/h, calculate the

top width required. Generally, top width of 0.3 to 0.7 m
can be adopted in design with maximum of 1.0 m. When
even with maximum top width, if biogas loading is
greater than 3.0 m/h reduce the height of GLS separation
device to 20% and repeat the earlier steps of GLS
separator design, with fresh number of domes. Even with
reduction in height of GLS separator if these checks are
not satisfying, provide additional layer of gas collector
dome. When two or more layer of gas collectors are used
the height of each layer can be 15 to 20% of the overall
reactor height, with minimum height of each layer as 1.2
35 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

m and maximum up to 1.5 to 2.0 m. The fresh biogas

collection per dome is to be worked out and further steps
are repeated until all design conditions are satisfied.

Check for Surface overflow rate:

The width of the water surface (Ws) available for settling

of solids for each gas dome, at top of the reactor, can be
calculated as difference of WB and Wt. The
corresponding surface overflow rate is calculated as
hydraulic flow rate per dome divided by product of length
(or diameter) and Ws.

It is recommended that the surface overflow rate for

effective settling of solids back to the reactor should be
less than 20 m3/m2.d at average flow and should be less
than 36 m3/m2.d under peak flow conditions. If the
calculated surface overflow rate is meeting these criteria
the design of the GLS separator is final. When it is
exceeding the limits recommended, it is advisable to
reduce the height of the reactor, thus, for same volume of
the reactor more plan area will be available. When the
36 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

height of the reactor is reduced all earlier steps for design

of GLS separator should be repeated to satisfy all design
criterion. The minimum height of the reactor should be
restricted to 4.0 m (preferably 4.5 m). Once, all the
design criteria are satisfied the angle of inclination of the
gas collector dome with horizontal (q) can be calculated
as q = tan-1[ 2h/ (Wb – Wt)].

Baffle of sufficient overlap (0.1 to 0.2 m) should be

provided below the gas collector in order to avoid entry of
biogas in the settling compartment. The diameter of the
gas exhaust pipes should be sufficient to guarantee easy
removal of the biogas from the gas collection cap,
particularly in case of foaming. Generally, lower reactor
height is required for UASB reactor treating sewage.
Under certain situation, particularly for very low strength
of wastewater, even with reduction of height to the
minimum may not meet all design requirements. In such
cases the OLR adopted for design can be reduced to
provide greater volume of the reactor and hence more
plan area to meet the entire design criterion.
37 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Effluent Collection System:

The effluent has to leave the UASB reactor via number of

launders distributed over entire area discharging, to main
launder provided at periphery of the reactor. The effluent
launders can be designed in such a way that the weir
loading (m3/m.d) should not exceed the design criteria of
Secondary Settling Tank (i.e.185 m3/m.d). The width of
the launders may be minimum 0.20 m to facilitate
maintenance. The depth of the launder can be worked out
as open channel flow.

Additional depth of 0.10 to 0.15 m shall be provided to

facilitate free flow. On both sides of the launders ‘V’
notches shall be used. When effluent launders are
provided with scum baffles, the ‘V’ notches will be
protected from clogging as the baffles retain the floating
materials. A scum layer may form at the top of reactor
and sludge accumulation can occur in the launder hence,
periodical cleaning of launders and removal of scum
should be carried out.
38 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Design of Feed Inlet System:

It is important to establish optimum contact between the

sludge available inside the reactor and wastewater
admitted, and to avoid channeling of the wastewater
through sludge bed. Hence, proper design of inlet
distribution system is necessary. Depending on
topography, pumping arrangement, and likelihood
blocking of inlet pipes, one could provide either (i)
gravity feed from top (preferred for wastewater with high
suspended fraction), or (ii) pumped feed from bottom
through manifold and laterals (preferred in case of soluble
industrial wastewaters).

The rough guidelines for the number of feed inlet points

required in UASB reactor is presented by Lettinga and
Hulshoff for different concentration of the sludge inside
the reactor and applicable loading rates. In general, the
area to be served by each feed inlet point should be
between 1 and 3 m2. Lower area per inlet point (1 m2) is
to be adopted for reactor designed for OLR of about 1 kg
COD/m3.d, and higher area (2 to 3 m2) per inlet point can
39 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

be provided to the reactor designed for OLR greater than

2 kg COD/m3.d. Apart from the number of feed inlet
points, the minimum and maximum outflow velocity
through the nozzles should also be given due
consideration while designing.

This outflow velocity through nozzles can be kept

between 0.5 and 4.0 m/s. The equation of ’condition for
maximum power transfer through nozzle’ can be used for
working out nozzle or inlet pipes diameter. The clogging
of the nozzles may represent serious problem resulting in
uneven distribution of the wastewater over reactor
bottom, particularly when treating partially soluble
wastewater.

Construct material:

In the anaerobic conditions of an UASB reactor, there is

a risk of corrosion in two main situations:

 Some H2S gas can pass the GSL separator and

accumulate above the water level in the top of the
reactor. This will be oxidized to sulphate by oxygen
40 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

in the air to form Sulphuric Acid that will in turn

cause corrosion of both concrete and steel.
 Below the water level: Calcium Oxide, (CaO), in
concrete can be dissolve with by Carbon Dioxide,
(CO2), in the liquid in low pH conditions.

To avoid these problems, the material used to construct

the UASB reactor should be corrosion resistant, such as
stainless steel or plastics, or be provided with proper
surface coatings, (e.g. coated concrete rather than coated
steel, plastic covered with impregnated hardwood for the
settler, plastic fortified plywood, etc).
41 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Operation:

Operation criteria: The optimum pH range is from 6.6 to

7.6 The wastewater temperatures should not be < 5 °C
because low temperatures can impede the hydrolysis rate
of phase 1 and the activity of methanogenic bacteria.
Therefore in winter season, methane gas may be needed
to heat the wastewater to be treated in the reactor.

Always maintain the ratio of COD : N : P = 350 : 5 : 1 If

there is a deficiency of some of these nutrients in the
wastewater nutrient addition must be made to sustain the
micro-organisms. Chemicals that are frequently used to
add nutrients (N, P) are NH4H2PO4, KH2PO4,
(NH4)2CO3...

Suspended solid (SS) can affect the anaerobic process in

many ways:

 Formation of scum layers and foaming due to the

presence of insoluble components with floating
properties, like fats and lipids.
42 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

 Retarding or even completely obstructing the

formation of sludge granules.
 Entrapment of granular sludge in a layer of adsorbed
insoluble matter and sometimes also falling apart
(disintegration) of granular sludge.
 A sudden and almost complete wash-out of the
sludge present in reactor
 Decline of the overall methanogenic activity of the
sludge due to accumulation of SS

Therefore, the SS concentration in the feed to the reactor

should not exceed 500 mg/l In phase 2 and 3 the pH will
be reduced and the buffer capacity of wastewater may
have to be increased to provide alkalinity of 1000 – 5000
mg/l CaCO3

Start-up: An UASB reactor requires a long time for start-

up, e.g. from 2 – 3 weeks in good conditions (t > 20oC)
and sometimes the start-up can take up to 3 – 4 months. In
start-up process, hydraulic loading must be Ј 50% of the
design hydraulic loading.
43 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

The start-up of the UASB reactor can be considered to be

complete once a satisfactory performance of the system
has been reached at its design load.

Other Requirements:

It is necessary to keep provision for removal of excess

sludge from the reactor. Although, the excess sludge is
wasted from about middle height of the reactor, it is also
necessary to make arrangement at bottom of the reactor.
In addition, 5 to 6 numbers of valves should be provided
over reactor height to facilitate sampling of the sludge.
For treating high strength wastewater it is recommended
to apply effluent recycle, in order to dilute COD
concentration and to improve contact between sludge and
wastewater.

For treating wastewater with COD concentration greater

than 4 - 5 g/L, it is recommended to apply dilution during
start-up, for proper granulation of sludge inside UASB
reactor. Auxiliary equipment has to be installed for
addition of essential nutrients, and alkalinity for control of
44 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

pH of the influent. The other equipments to be provided

are for measurement of pH, temperature, influent flow
rate, and gas production rate.

Thus, this design of the reactor will meet all design

recommendation proposed in the literature. The proper
design of reactor along with GLS separator will help in
better retention of the sludge inside the reactor. This will
help in reducing start-up time, required for the reactor to
achieve steady state, and better performance of the reactor
during steady state.

In this design procedure first priority is given for

maintaining maximum possible COD conversion
efficiency of the reactor, by selecting proper loading
conditions for that COD concentrations, and then to try
for minimizing cost of the reactor. For given COD
concentration of the wastewater maximum possible
loading rates are used in the beginning and reduced in
steps till the design satisfies all the requirements. Thus,
this design will provide minimum volume of the reactor
satisfying all design recommendations.
45 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

UASB Reactor Performance:

Separation of inflow to each UASB cell, ventilation,

sampling and excess sludge systems not shown, for
clarity. Also note that liquid level inside level will be
below overflow weir by a height = gas pressure (~ 0.2 -
0.3m)
46 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

Figure 8: Treatment Performance

47 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
48 ASHUTOSH SHARMA BTECH CHEMICAL ENGINEERING