Data envelopment analysis for assessing optimal operation of ultra-filtration systems for effluent polishing

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 379-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Bick ◽  
G. Oron ◽  
L. Gillerman ◽  
Y. Manor
Keyword(s):  
Data Envelopment Analysis ◽  
Information Quality ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Optimal Operation ◽  
Treated Wastewater ◽  
Secondary Effluent ◽  
Data Envelopment ◽  
Ultra Filtration ◽  
Alternative Water ◽  
Membrane Treatment

The scarcity of fresh water in most of the countries in the Mediterranean Basin makes treated wastewater a valuable alternative water source. The improved technology for the removal of particles, turbidity, bacteria and cysts from effluent, without the use of disinfectants is based on the use of membranes, mainly on micro-filtration (MF) and ultra-filtration (UF). Membrane treatment of secondary effluent sounds attractive since it is a stable water source. Pathogens, soluble organic matters, turbidity, color, parasites and viruses can be removed by UF membrane technology. Experiments are in progress in the commercial fields of Gadash Har Hebron Enterprise (GHHE), located near the City of Arad, Israel. Field data collected from a two-stage UF pilot plant (240 m3/day) enable us to provide performance estimate efficiencies based on the data envelopment analysis method. The research focused on individual UF experiments allowing us to determine the UF performance efficiency in terms of information quality for adequate decision-making. Field results are presented in order to support the theory and related pricing decisions.

Agriculture, water and the environment: future challenges

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 51-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Oron
Keyword(s):  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Water Sources ◽  
Additional Treatment ◽  
Treated Wastewater ◽  
Secondary Effluent ◽  
Arid Zones ◽  
Runoff Water ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Future Challenges

Various countries in the Mediterranean Basin and other arid and semi-arid regions are facing a gap between water supply and demand. This gap is closely linked with agricultural production and environmental issues. It is probably due to small amounts of precipitation and low availability of natural water sources. Special ventures have to be undertaken in order to supply water at adequate quality for all requirements. These can be accomplished by development of additional water sources that currently are considered marginal. The additional sources include saline ground water, treated wastewater and runoff water and are usually required to augment the limited supply from the regional conventional high quality local sources. The paper presented options for development of the marginal water sources in arid zones in conjunction with minimizing the dependence on high quality water. Domestic secondary effluent is a valuable water source for reclamation however, additional treatment is required to use it for unrestricted purposes. It can be achieved primarily by implementation of the membrane technology, namely ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) stages.

scholarly journals Persistence of Escherichia coli O157:H12 and Escherichia coli K12 as Non-pathogenic Surrogates for O157:H7 on Lettuce Cultivars Irrigated With Secondary-Treated Wastewater and Roof-Collected Rain Water in the Field

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hsin-Bai Yin ◽  
Nidhi Gupta ◽  
Chi-Hung Chen ◽  
Ashley Boomer ◽  
Abani Pradhan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Pathogenic Bacteria ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Water Sources ◽  
Rain Water ◽  
Treated Wastewater ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Water Characteristics ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Alternative Water

Treated wastewater (TW) and roof-collected rain water (RW) that meet the required microbial quality as per Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) regulation may serve as alternative irrigation water sources to decrease the pressure on the current water scarcity. Alternative water sources may have different water characteristics that influence the survival and transfer of microorganisms to the irrigated produce. Further, these water sources may contain pathogenic bacteria such as Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli. To evaluate the risk associated with TW and RW irrigation on the fresh produce safety, the effect of TW and RW irrigation on the transfer of two non-pathogenic E. coli strains as surrogates for E. coli O157:H7 to different lettuce cultivars grown in the field was investigated. Lettuce cultivars “Annapolis,” “Celinet,” and “Coastline” were grown in the field at the Fulton farm (Chambersburg, PA). Approximately 10 days before harvest, lettuce plants were spray-irrigated with groundwater (GW), TW, or RW containing 6 log CFU ml−1 of a mixture of nalidixic acid-resistant E. coli O157:H12 and chloramphenicol-resistant E. coli K12 in fecal slurry as non-pathogenic surrogates for E. coli O157:H7. On 0, 1, 3, 7, and 10 days post-irrigation, four replicate lettuce leaf samples (30 g per sample) from each group were collected and pummeled in 120 ml of buffered peptone water for 2 min, followed by spiral plating on MacConkey agars with antibiotics. Results showed that the recovery of E. coli O157:H12 was significantly greater than the populations of E. coli K12 recovered from the irrigated lettuce regardless of the water sources and the lettuce cultivars. The TW irrigation resulted in the lowest recovery of the E. coli surrogates on the lettuce compared to the populations of these bacteria recovered from the lettuce with RW and GW irrigation on day 0. The difference in leaf characteristics of lettuce cultivars significantly influenced the recovery of these surrogates on lettuce leaves. Populations of E. coli O157:H12 recovered from the RW-irrigated “Annapolis” lettuce were significantly lower than the recovery of this bacterium from the “Celinet” and “Coastline” lettuce (P < 0.05). Overall, the recovery of specific E. coli surrogates from the RW and TW irrigated lettuce was comparable to the lettuce with the GW irrigation, where GW served as a baseline water source. E. coli O157:H12 could be a more suitable surrogate compared to E. coli K12 because it is an environmental watershed isolate. The findings of this study provide critical information in risk assessment evaluation of RW and TW irrigation on lettuce in Mid-Atlantic area.

Tertiary Treatment of Livestock Wastewater in the Context of Alternative Water Resources for Sustainable Agriculture

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (10) ◽  
pp. 161-170
Author(s):  
Carmen Tociu ◽  
Cristina Maria ◽  
Gyorgy Deak ◽  
Irina-Elena Ciobotaru ◽  
Alexandru-Anton Ivanov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Treated Wastewater ◽  
Coliform Bacteria ◽  
Soil Productivity ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Livestock Wastewater ◽  
Alternative Water

The limited availability and quality of water resources are key issues of water management, and the protection and preservation of water resources are a requirement in the context of accelerated economic growth and principles of sustainable development. The experimental research presented in this paper is based on the need to identify alternative water sources and support unconventional wastewater treatment methods which would enable their reuse in areas affected by water scarcity and drought. Livestock wastewater contain significant levels of nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) and may represent an attractive water source for crop irrigation. This paper evaluates the efficacy of a proposed technological process for tertiary wastewater treatment consisting of two steps: electrochemical treatment for the removal of suspended and colloidal impurities and ozone disinfection. The experimental results showed higher efficiencies for the removal of chemical pollutants (92.5% COD, 79.3% BOD, 98.6% TSS, 41% residue saline) and significant inactivation of microorganisms (over 99.9% for total coliform bacteria and in some cases 100% for faecal coliform bacteria and faecal streptococci). The quality of the effluent complies with the regulations for wastewater use in agriculture and allows its reuse for different categories of use considering the required conditions for soil/crops. The successful application of treated wastewater to agricultural crops depends in a high extent on the good practices aimed on the improvement of crop yield and quality, optimisation of soil productivity and protection of the environment undertaken by the economic entities.

scholarly journals Technical and Scale Efficiency of the Brazilian Municipalities’ Water and Sanitation Services: A Two-Stage Data Envelopment Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 199
Author(s):  
Miguel Alves Pereira ◽  
Rui Cunha Marques
Keyword(s):  
Data Envelopment Analysis ◽  
Water Source ◽  
Scale Efficiency ◽  
Data Envelopment ◽  
Service Networks ◽  
Human Right ◽  
Two Stage ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Contextual Environment

Seeking to “ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all” is an admirable Sustainable Development Goal and an honourable commitment of the United Nations and its Member States regarding the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation services (WSSs). However, the majority of countries are not on target to achieve this by 2030, with several of them moving away from the best practices. Brazil is one of these cases, given, for example, the existing asymmetries in the access to water supply and sanitation service networks. For this reason, we propose a benchmarking exercise using a two-stage Data Envelopment Analysis to measure the technical and scale efficiency of the Brazilian municipalities’ WSSs, noting their contextual environment. Our results point towards low mean efficiency scores, motivated by the existence of significant scale inefficiencies (the vast majority of municipalities are operating at a larger than optimal scale). Furthermore, the Water source was found to be a statistically significant efficiency predictor, with statistically significant differences found in terms of Ownership and Geography. Ultimately, we suggest policy-making and regulatory possibilities based on debureaucratization, the implementation of stricter expenditure control policies, and investment in the expansion of WSSs.

Membrane technology for sustainable treated wastewater reuse: agricultural, environmental and hydrological considerations

2008 ◽  
Vol 57 (9) ◽  
pp. 1383-1388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gideon Oron ◽  
Leonid Gillerman ◽  
Amos Bick ◽  
Yossi Manor ◽  
Nisan Buriakovsky ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Field Experiments ◽  
Wastewater Reuse ◽  
Shallow Groundwater ◽  
Membrane System ◽  
Treated Wastewater ◽  
Secondary Effluent ◽  
Dissolved Solids ◽  
Treated Wastewater Reuse ◽  
Agricultural Yields ◽  
Membrane Treatment

Field experiments were conducted in agricultural fields in which secondary wastewater of the City of Arad (Israel) is reused for irrigation. For sustainable agricultural production and safe groundwater recharge the secondary effluent is further polished by a combined two-stage membrane pilot system. The pilot membrane system consists of two main in row stages: Ultrafiltration (UF) and Reverse Osmosis (RO). The UF stage is efficient in the removal of the pathogens and suspended organic matter while the successive RO stage provides safe removal of the dissolved solids (salinity). Effluents of various qualities were applied for agricultural irrigation along with continuous monitoring of the membrane system performance. Best agricultural yields were obtained when applying effluent having minimal content of dissolved solids (after the RO stage) as compared with secondary effluent without any further treatment and extended storage. In regions with shallow groundwater reduced soil salinity in the upper productive layers, maintained by extra membrane treatment, will guarantee minimal dissolved solids migration to the aquifers and minimize salinisation processes.

Data Envelopment Analysis Theory, Methodology and Applications

1997 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 332-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Charnes ◽  
W Cooper ◽  
A Y Lewin ◽  
L M Seiford
Keyword(s):  
Data Envelopment Analysis ◽  
Data Envelopment ◽  
Analysis Theory
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