WASTE WATER TREATMENT MAIN INDEX

Overview: Coarse screens

Trouble shooting guide Sewage passes through bar screens for removal of larger objects (rags, plastics, tins, wood, etc.). Automatic or manual bar screen cleaners remove the larger objects from the raw sewage. The collected material is temporarily stored to be transferred later to a landfill site. The action of the bar screen equipment is paced according to the amount of incoming solids and the flow rate.

The amount and type of solids trapped depends on the size of the gaps in the screen. Typical opening sizes (space between bars) for a coarse screen are between 10 and 25 mm.

Coarse screens have little or no effect on organic and suspended solids loads of the waste water. The primary function is to protect the downstream equipment of the waste water treatment plant against physical damage.

The amount of material removed will depend on the characteristics (activities, reticulation method, etc.) of the area serviced. Future planning will depend on accurate past recordings of flow and volume of screenings removed (For further reading refer to WISA, 2002).

REFERENCES Ref.1. Water Institute of Southern Africa (2002): Handbook for the operation of waste water treatment plants. ISBN 0-958-45346-2. Back to top

WASTE WATER TREATMENT MAIN INDEX

Overview: Grit removal

Purpose of grit removal

Wastewater grit materials (known as detritus) include sand, silt, cinders, stones, glass, metal particles and other large-sized, relatively non-putrescible organic and inorganic substances. Grit removal is an essential element of preliminary treatment and its purpose is the following: Protects moving mechanical equipment and pumps from abnormal wear due to abrasion Reduces blockages in pipelines Prevents sedimentation of materials in aeration tanks and sludge digesters that result in loss of usable volume. The quantity of grit removed will depend on local circumstances but a rough indication of the quantity of grit to be expected is 7.5 to 90 m3 M.-1 wastewater treated. The moisture content of grit is normally in the range 15 to 35%

De-gritting devices
Hand-Cleaned Channels These units are generally only used in plants with flows less than 4 M/day. The channels have control devices (venturi flumes or weirs) at their outlets to regulate the velocity to about 0.3 m/s regardless of the wastewater flow. Velocities that are too low allow organics to contaminate the grit; excessive velocities carry grit to the downstream processes. At least two elongated channels are provided so that one at a time can be closed off, drained and the accumulated grit removed manually by shovelling. Mechanically Cleaned Channels In larger plants, the channels are generally cleaned by a chain-and-flight grit scraper system without emptying the channels. Typically, a bucket elevator, inclined screw conveyor or air lift pump removes the grit from a sump and deposits it into a container or storage hopper for disposal (see sketch below). The frequency of both the grit scraper and removal systems (manual or automatic) depends on the rate of grit accumulation.

REFERENCES Ref.1. Water Institute of Southern Africa (2002): Handbook for the operation of waste water treatment plants. ISBN 0-958-45346-2. Back to top

WASTE WATER TREATMENT MAIN INDEX

Biological filter: Trouble shooting guide

Biological filter: Overview

Biological filter: Trouble shooting guide

Problem Possible cause Corrective action
Calculate loading. Reduce loading by putting more bio-filters in service. Increase COD removal in primary settling tanks by using all tanks available and minimising Excessive organic load storage of primary sludge in tanks. Objectionable causing anaerobic odours from filter decomposition in filter Encourage aerobic conditions in treatment units ahead of the bio-filter by adding chemical oxidants such as chlorine, potassium permanganate, or hydrogen peroxide, or by pre-aerating, recycling plant effluent, or increasing air to aerated grit chambers

Enforce industrial waste ordinance, if industry is source of excess load. Scrub bio-filter off-gases. Expand the plant. Increase hydraulic loading to wash out excess biological growth Remove debris from filter effluent channels and under drains. Remove debris from top of filter media. Unclog vent pipes. Insufficient ventilation Reduce hydraulic loading if underdrains are flooded. Install fans to induce draught through filter. Check for filter plugging caused by breakdown of media. Reduce organic loading. Increase hydraulic loading to increase sloughing. Flush filter surface with high-pressure stream of water. Chlorinate influent for several hours. Maintain 1
-1

Excessive biological growth Ponding on filter media

to 2 mg .l residual chlorine. Flood filter for 24 hours Shutdown filter until media dries out. Poor media Poor housekeeping Replace media. Keep area surrounding the filter mowed. Remove weeds and shrubs.

Insufficient flow to turn Increase hydraulic loading. distributor Flush out arms by opening end plates. Flush out orifices. Remove solids from influent wastewater.

Rotating distributor Clogged arms or slows down or orifices stops

Remove material from vent pipe by rodding or Clogged distributor vent flushing. Remove solids from influent pipe wastewater.

Bad main bearing Distributor arms not level Distributor rods hitting media

Replace bearing. Adjust guy wires at tie rods.

Level media or remove some media

Worn bearing dust seal Replace seal. Worn turntable seal or Dirt in main bearing seal plate oil Condensate not drained regularly or oil level too low Worn turntable seal Replace seal. Inspect seal plate and replace if worn. Check oil level, drain condensate, and refill if needed. Replace seal.

Water leaking from Leaking expansion joint distributor base between distributor and Repair or replace expansion joint. influent piping Open closed or throttled valves. Excessive head Unplug distributor arms, headers and laterals. Unplug distributor nozzles and orifices. Unplug distributor vent lines. Adjust or replace packing or mechanical seals. Adjust impeller to casing clearance. Replace wear rings if worn excessively. Replace or resurface worn shaft sleeves. Pump malfunction Insufficient flow from Recirculation pumps Check impeller for wear and entangled solids. Remove debris. Check pump casing for air lock. Release trapped air. Lubricate bearings. Replace worn bearings. Lubricate bearings. Replace worn bearings. Keep motor as clean and dry as possible. Pump drive motor failure Pump and motor misaligned, check vibration and alignment. Redesign as needed. Burned windings. Rewind or replace motor. Check the drive motor for excessive current

draw

Ref.1. Water Institute of Southern Africa (2002): Handbook for the operation of waste water treatment plants. ISBN 0-958-45346-2. Back to top

WASTE WATER TREATMENT MAIN INDEX

Activated sludge: Overview

What is activated sludge ?

The process was discovered by the aeration of holding tanks for distributing raw sewage onto land. It was noticed that the nature of the sewage improved during aeration, which was applied mainly to prevent odours from forming. This improvement was even more marked when some of the sludge that was suspended and settled to the bottom during decanting, was re-suspended during aeration of the following batch of sewage. This led to the Fill and Draw method of treatment by which the sludge was allowed to settle to the bottom before decanting the effluent, filling the tank again with raw sewage, re-suspending the sludge by aeration and repeating the decanting process. It was noticed that under these conditions the sludge became more active and this process was referred to as activating the sludge. The basic layout of an activated sludge plant is illustrated in the sketch below. The aeration basin is followed by a clarifier, where the active sludge is separated from the liquid and returned (pumped) to the aeration basin, together with the raw influent. The aeration basin or reactor, the clarifier and return sludge pumping form integral parts of an activated sludge system. The wastewater, containing numerous organic compounds, serves as a food source for micro-organisms in the mixture of activated sludge. Air is supplied for the respiration or breathing of these organisms and also for keeping the organisms in suspension and in contact with the food source. The organisms use the food to obtain energy, thereby growing to form new micro-organisms, carbon dioxide and water. The mass of organisms is constantly passed to the clarifier to be separated by settling and recycled by pumping back to the aeration basin (return activated sludge RAS). The surplus sludge (waste activated sludge WAS) formed by the additional growth of organisms must be removed from the system to keep the total mass of organisms constant.

REFERENCES Ref.1. Water Institute of Southern Africa (2002): Handbook for the operation of waste water treatment plants. ISBN 0-958-45346-2. Back to top