scholarly journals Greenhouse Gases Emissions from Wastewater Treatment Plants: Minimization, Treatment, and Prevention

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Campos ◽  
D. Valenzuela-Heredia ◽  
A. Pedrouso ◽  
A. Val del Río ◽  
M. Belmonte ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Main Stream ◽  
Partial Nitritation ◽  
Operational Conditions ◽  
Capital Costs ◽  
Treatment And Prevention ◽  
Lack Of Information

The operation of wastewater treatment plants results in direct emissions, from the biological processes, of greenhouse gases (GHG) such as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O), as well as indirect emissions resulting from energy generation. In this study, three possible ways to reduce these emissions are discussed and analyzed:(1)minimization through the change of operational conditions,(2)treatment of the gaseous streams, and(3)prevention by applying new configurations and processes to remove both organic matter and pollutants. In current WWTPs, to modify the operational conditions of existing units reveals itself as possibly the most economical way to decrease N2O and CO2emissions without deterioration of effluent quality. Nowadays the treatment of the gaseous streams containing the GHG seems to be a not suitable option due to the high capital costs of systems involved to capture and clean them. The change of WWTP configuration by using microalgae or partial nitritation-Anammox processes to remove ammonia from wastewater, instead of conventional nitrification-denitrification processes, can significantly reduce the GHG emissions and the energy consumed. However, the area required in the case of microalgae systems and the current lack of information about stability of partial nitritation-Anammox processes operating in the main stream of the WWTP are factors to be considered.

scholarly journals Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from wastewater treatment plants

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giorgio Mannina ◽  
Alida Cosenza ◽  
Taise Ferreira Rebouças
Keyword(s):  
Mathematical Model ◽  
Sensitivity Analysis ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Uncertainty Analysis ◽  
Total Nitrogen ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Sensitivity Testing ◽  
N2o Formation ◽  
Operational Conditions

Abstract This paper presents the sensitivity and uncertainty analysis of a plant-wide mathematical model for wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). The mathematical model assesses direct and indirect (due to the energy consumption) greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions from a WWTP employing a whole-plant approach. The model includes: i) the kinetic/mass-balance based model regarding nitrogen; ii) two-step nitrification process; iii) N2O formation both during nitrification and denitrification (as dissolved and off-gas concentration). Important model factors have been selected by using the Extended-Fourier Amplitude Sensitivity Testing (FAST) global sensitivity analysis method. A scenario analysis has been performed in order to evaluate the uncertainty related to all selected important model factors (scenario 1), important model factors related to the influent features (scenario 2) and important model factors related to the operational conditions (scenario 3). The main objective of this paper was to analyse the key factors and sources of uncertainty at a plant-wide scale influencing the most relevant model outputs: direct and indirect (DIR,CO2eq and IND,CO2eq, respectively), effluent quality index (EQI), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total nitrogen (TN) effluent concentration (CODOUT and TNOUT, respectively). Sensitivity analysis shows that model factors related to the influent wastewater and primary effluent COD fractionation exhibit a significant impact on direct, indirect and EQI model factors. Uncertainty analysis reveals that outflow TNOUT has the highest uncertainty in terms of relative uncertainty band for scenario 1 and scenario 2. Therefore, uncertainty of influential model factors and influent fractionation factors has a relevant role on total nitrogen prediction. Results of the uncertainty analysis show that the uncertainty of model prediction decreases after fixing stoichiometric/kinetic model factors.

scholarly journals Long-term investigation of phosphorus removal by iron electrocoagulation in small-scale wastewater treatment plants

2018 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. 1304-1311 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Mishima ◽  
M. Hama ◽  
Y. Tabata ◽  
J. Nakajima
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Phosphorus Removal ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Phosphorus Release ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Operational Conditions ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Iron Electrolysis

Abstract Small-scale wastewater treatment plants (SWTPs), called Johkasou, are widely used as decentralized and individual wastewater treatment systems in sparsely populated areas in Japan. Even in SWTPs, nutrients should be removed to control eutrophication. An iron electrolysis method is effective to remove phosphorus chemically in SWTPs. However, it is necessary to determine the precise conditions under which phosphorus can be effectively and stably removed in full scale SWTPs for a long period. Therefore, long-term phosphorus removal from SWTPs was investigated and optimum operational conditions for phosphorus removal by iron electrolysis were analyzed in this study. Efficient phosphorus removal can be achieved for a long time by adjusting the amount of iron against the actual population equivalent. The change of the recirculation ratio had no negative effect on overall phosphorus removal. Phosphorus release to the bulk phase was prevented by the accumulated iron, which was supplied by iron electrolysis, resulting in stable phosphorus removal. The effect of environmental load reduction due to phosphorus removal by iron electrolysis was greater than the cost of power consumption for iron electrolysis.

scholarly journals Contribution of prokaryotes and eukaryotes to CO2 emissions in the wastewater treatment process

PeerJ ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. e9325
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Jaromin-Gleń ◽  
Roman Babko ◽  
Tatiana Kuzmina ◽  
Yaroslav Danko ◽  
Grzegorz Łagód ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Activated Sludge ◽  
Greenhouse Effect ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Batch Reactors ◽  
Sequencing Batch Reactors ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Process ◽  
Eukaryotic Organisms ◽  
Quantitative Contribution

Reduction of the greenhouse effect is primarily associated with the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the gases that increases the greenhouse effect - it is responsible for about half of the greenhouse effect. Significant sources of CO2 are wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and waste management, with about 3% contribution to global emissions. CO2 is produced mainly in the aerobic stage of wastewater purification and is a consequence of activated sludge activity. Although the roles of activated sludge components in the purification process have been studied quite well, their quantitative contribution to CO2 emissions is still unknown. The emission of CO2 caused by prokaryotes and eukaryotes over the course of a year (taking into account subsequent seasons) in model sequencing batch reactors (SBR) is presented in this study. In this work, for the first time, we aimed to quantify this contribution of eukaryotic organisms to total CO2 emissions during the WWTP process. It is of the order of several or more ppm. The contribution of CO2 produced by different components of activated sludge in WWTPs can improve estimation of the emissions of GHGs in this area of human activity.

scholarly journals Benchmarking of large municipal wastewater treatment plants treating over 100,000 PE in Austria

2008 ◽  
Vol 57 (10) ◽  
pp. 1487-1493 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Lindtner ◽  
H. Schaar ◽  
H. Kroiss
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Municipal Wastewater ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Operating Costs ◽  
Municipal Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Design Capacity ◽  
Capital Costs ◽  
Process Indicators ◽  
Benchmarking System

During a six-year period the Austrian Benchmarking System was developed. The main objectives of this benchmarking system are the development of process indicators, identification of best performance and determination of cost reduction potentials. Since 2004 this system is operated via an internet platform and automated to a large extent. Every year twenty to thirty treatment plants use the web-based access to this benchmarking platform. The benchmarking procedure comprises data acquisition, data evaluation including reporting and organised exchange of experience for the treatment plant managers. The process benchmarking method links the real costs with four defined main processes and two support processes. For wastewater treatment plants with a design capacity >100,000 PE these processes are further split up into sub-processes. For each (sub-) process the operating costs are attributed to six cost elements. The specific total yearly costs and the yearly operating costs of all (sub-)processes are related to the measured mean yearly pollution load of the plant expressed in population equivalents (PE110: 110 gCOD/d corresponding to 60 g BOD5/d)). The specific capital costs are related to the design capacity (PE). The paper shows the benchmarking results of 6 Austrian plants with a design capacity >100,000 PE representing approximately 30% of the Austrian municipal wastewater treatment plant capacity.

scholarly journals Estimation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from natural lagoon wastewater treatment plant: Case of Ain Taoujdate-Morocco

2020 ◽  
Vol 150 ◽  
pp. 01012
Author(s):  
Yassine Bahi ◽  
Ahmed Akhssas ◽  
Mohamed Khamar ◽  
Lahcen Bahi ◽  
Hanane Souidi
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plant ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Empirical Method ◽  
Monthly Basis ◽  
Total Contribution ◽  
Simple Modeling

The process of removing organic components from wastewater as BOD5 through wastewater treatment plants has been proven to be a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, mainly methane CH4, carbon dioxide CO2 and nitrous oxide N2O. The reduction of these emissions has attracted more interest given their major contribution to global warming. This study was able to identify and estimate the amount of methane and CO2 emissions on a monthly basis by a simple modeling approach and an empirical method (IPCC) for N2O emissions, in the case of Ain-Taoujdate wastewater treatment plant, throughout the years 2013, 2018 and 2019. The results showed that anaerobic ponds were the main source of on-site emissions with 66% of total contribution and 33% for facultative ponds, followed by the energy consumption of the pumping station as off-site GHG emissions.

scholarly journals Optimization and scale-up of an LED-illuminated microalgal photobioreactor for wastewater treatment

2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (12) ◽  
pp. 2352-2361
Author(s):  
L. M. L. Silva ◽  
A. F. Santiago ◽  
G. A. Silva ◽  
A. L. P. Castro ◽  
L. S. Bastos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Light Emitting Diode ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Operating Time ◽  
Luminous Flux ◽  
Light Emitting ◽  
Operational Conditions ◽  
Nitrogen Phosphorus

Abstract The use of light-emitting diode (LED)-illuminated photobioreactors with microalgae has been extensively studied for wastewater treatment. Most studies have used isolated microalgae species; however, this practice does not match the reality of conditions in wastewater treatment plants. Operational conditions that promote greater growth of algal biomass and that remove pollutants most effectively are disputed in the literature. In this context, LED-illuminated photobioreactors with microalgae were evaluated using multivariate analysis in order to optimize removal of pollutants (nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbonaceous organic matter). Three variables were evaluated: operating time, LED wavelength, and luminous flux intensity. A microalgae consortium was used in the photobioreactor. In addition to the LED-illuminated photobioreactors, control photobioreactors illuminated by sunlight were also operated. Using the results obtained in the optimization, a scaled-up reactor approximately 8.5 times larger in volume was operated to evaluate if the behavior would be maintained. The best operational conditions for the removal of pollutants were observed in LED-illuminated photobioreactors operated under a light intensity of 700 μmol·m−2s−1 for 15 days. Under these conditions, it was possible to remove 89.97% of carbonaceous organic matter, 86.50% of nitrogen, and 30.64% of phosphorus. The scaled-up photobioreactor operated with similar performance.

Anaerobic digestion: impact of future greenhouse gases mitigation policies on methane generation and usage

2005 ◽  
Vol 52 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 39-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
P.F. Greenfield ◽  
D.J. Batstone
Keyword(s):  
Nitrous Oxide ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Carbon Tax ◽  
Treatment Plant ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Mitigation ◽  
Plant Design ◽  
Ghg Mitigation

The debate as to whether carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gas emissions will become subject to increasing regulation, increased restrictions, and probably to some form of carbon tax, has moved from a simple “yes” or “no” to “when”. Wastewater treatment plants will be significantly impacted by increased energy costs and by specific regulations and/or penalties associated with emissions of methane and nitrous oxide. In this paper, the greenhouse gases emissions of different wastewater process options are estimated. The paper outlines the increasing need for wastewater treatment plants to factor greenhouse gas mitigation issues into their medium- as and long-term strategies, and identifies anaerobic enhouse as processes as being at the core of such strategies. Further, the paper identifies a number of key research challenges to be addressed if such strategies are to play a larger role in attenuating the likely impacts of GHG mitigation requirements on wastewater treatment plant design and operation.

scholarly journals Environmental and Energy Assessment of Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants in Italy and Romania: A Comparative Study

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1611 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Fighir (Arsene) ◽  
Carmen Teodosiu ◽  
Silvia Fiore
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Municipal Wastewater ◽  
Sustainability Assessment ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Municipal Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants

Municipal wastewater treatment plants (MWWTPs) are essential infrastructures in any urban context, but they may be considered as a potential source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and should be coherent with European Union (EU) policy on energy efficiency. This study presents a sustainability evaluation of four Italian and Romanian MWWTPs in terms of energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions using Energy Performance and Carbon Emissions Assessment and Monitoring (ECAM) tool software. The obtained results indicated that biogas recovery improved energy performances, while the largest contributions in terms of GHG emissions were in all cases caused by energy consumption and methane produced during wastewater treatment. The Romanian plants exhibited higher GHG emissions, compared to the Italian plants, mainly because of the different values of national conversion factors for grid electricity (0.41 kg CO2/kWh for Italy and 1.07 kg CO2/kWh for Romania). Two scenarios aimed at enhancing the overall sustainability were hypothesized, based on increasing the serviced population or energy efficiency, achieving significant improvements. A sustainability assessment of MWWTPs should be adopted as a useful tool to help water utilities to introduce low-energy, low-carbon management practices as well as being useful for policy recommendations.

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