CE 4010: Water

and Wastewater
Treatment
Report on
Carrigrenan
WWTP.
Due Date: 6th January 2012

Name:
Student No:
Lecturer:

Denis OSullivan
108348006
Prof. Gerard Kiely

University College Cork

Coliste na hOllscoile Corcaigh

Department of Civil and Environmental

Engineering.

Introduction

Denis OSullivan, 108348006

CE 4010: Water and Wastewater

Carrigrenan Waste Water Treatment plant is the treatment plant which is

responsible for treating most of the waste and storm water from Cork city. It is
situated on a 42 acre site in Carrigrenan, near Little Island. Owned by Cork city
council, it was designed and built by EPS Group and is operated by Northumbrian
Water International on a 20 year contract. This plant is the final component of
the Cork main drainage scheme which cost approximately 340m. The plant
itself cost approximately 89m. The annual operational cost of this plant is
approximately 6m. Construction of the plant began in 1998 and concluded in
2003. The plant is a fully automated, state of the art plant. Following the
construction of this plant, Cork city now fully complies with the EU Wastewater
Treatment Directive of 1991.

Capacity
The plant is designed to handle 2.1 m3/s of influent to full treatment.
There is capacity for a further 2.08 m3/s of storm influent. Therefore, the
maximum flow to the inlet is 4.18 m3/s. This is directed to the storm tanks. As a
result of the fact that the plant is designed on a modular basis, there is
opportunity to extend the plant in the future to provide additional treatment if
the need arises. It can treat sewage from an estimated Population Equivalent of
324,000. By 2020, it is expected to be able to cater for a Population Equivalent
of 413,000. Of this, approximately 47% is domestic while 53% is industrial.
Since 2004, the plant has treated approximately 256 million m 3 of raw sewage.

Standards
The plant includes both primary and secondary treatment in order to
effectively treat the sewage to the EU Wastewater Treatment Directive
mentioned above. The targets for the plant as set out by this EU directive and
the average results of 2010 are as follows:
Target

Average Results 2010

COD

125 mg/l

88 mg/l

SS

35 mg/l

BOD

125 mg/l

16 mg/l
13 mg/l

Examining these results, it is apparent that the plant is performing well,

surpassing the required standards.

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Denis OSullivan, 108348006

CE 4010: Water and Wastewater

Treatment
Treatment Process

Screening and Grit Removal

- For Little Island only (Approximately 10 % of influent)
- Screening and Grit Removal for the rest of the city (90%) is carried out
in Mahon
Pre-aeration for septicity control
- Air is pumped in to ensure that aerobic digestion occurs and not
anaerobic digestion which produces septicity (poor odours)
Primary Settlement
- Covered:
- 2 No.
- Always Full
- Volume = 3850 m3
- Depth = 6.4 m
Storm tanks
- Uncovered
- 4 No.
- Rarely Full
- Volume = 3850 m3
- Depth = 6.4 m
Secondary Biological Treatment with Sequence Batch Reactors
(SBRs)
- 8 No.
- Working Volume = 8500 m3
- Length = 55m
- Breadth = 28m
- Depth = 6m
- Sludge from middle of SBR is diverted to head of SBR
- Speeds up process
- Selector zones aerate at a different rate to the main body
- Decides what kind of bugs are required for the micro-organisms
- First: Till/Aerate
- Next: Bugs settle to bottom of basin
- Water at top is clear and is decanted off. This is pumped into the final
effluent.
- Sludge is removed in the last 10 minutes of the decant cycle and sent
to the sludge dewatering station.
- 3 Modes
1. Wet Weather: Fills and Empties faster
2. Dry Weather: Standard
3. Maintenance: Similar to wet Weather. Speeds up if one basin is
under maintenance.
- System operates mostly in Wet weather Mode.
Anaerobic Sludge Digestion
- Biogas produced

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Denis OSullivan, 108348006

CE 4010: Water and Wastewater

- 3 No.
- Volume = 3400 m3
- Depth = 15 metres
Mechanical Sludge Thickening and Dewatering
- Gravity Belt: Polymers added long chains of charged particles which
attract sludge (0.5% 5% dry solids)
- Belt Press: two belts pressed against each other to squeeze water out
(3% 20% dry solids)
Thermal Drying of sludge
- Thin Film Evaporator
- Sieve (Former): Converts mass into spaghetti-like form.
- Hot Air Oven: Three belts top middle and bottom(44% 94% dry
solids)
- Dry Solids then collected and spread on agricultural land as fertiliser.
Use of bio-gas as a fuel source for drying
- Mix the sludge in the digesters: It is pumped into the digesters by a gas
ring at the bottom of the digester
- Heats Sludge as it is recirculated through the heat exchanges for more
efficient digestion
- Pasteurise and Dry the Sludge
Odour Control: Chemicals Scrubbers

Flows

Max flow to the plant = 4.18 m3/s.

Max flow to PSTs from the inlet chamber 3A
Max Flow to the SBRs from the PSTs = 1.93 m3/s.

Daily Data
The average daily data for 2010 is as follows below:
Actual

Design

Flow (m3/day)

119,190

COD Loading (kg/day)

37,483

49,938

BOD Loading (kg/day)

16,016

24,792

Suspended Solids (kg/day)

17,974

23,320

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71,231

Denis OSullivan, 108348006

CE 4010: Water and Wastewater

Percentage Dry Solids

The percentage dry solids at each stage are as follows:
Pre-digested sludge

57%

Digested Sludge

34%

Wet cake

20 -23 %

Spaghetti

40 50 %

Pellets (Target)

90 %

Process Flow Diagram

The process flow diagram is shown overleaf.

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