Removal of fecal coliforms by thermophilic anaerobic digestion processes

2002 ◽  
Vol 46 (10) ◽  
pp. 147-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. De Leén ◽  
D. Jenkins

Recent U.S. EPA regulations (40 CFR Section 503) specify maximum concentrations of pathogens and metals for Class A wastewater treatment plant sludges. The most common sludge process is mesophilic (35¡C) digestion which stabilizes the solids, produces a combustible gas but does not create an effluent that meets the 503 Class A pathogen requirements. This investigation was conducted to determine whether anaerobic digestion processes incorporating a thermophilic stage could achieve 503 Class A pathogen levels. The research reported here was a bench-scale screening study meant to identify the most promising process alternatives for further investigation. Fecal Coliform (FC) concentrations were used to assess disinfection efficiency. Digesters were 30 L capacity fed semi-continuously in draw-fill mode. Digester startup was rapid to produce true thermophiles. Temperature staging and pH were assessed in 3 sets of experiments: Set 1 were one stage (“acid phase”), Set 2 were one stage (“acid + methane phases”) and Set 3 were two stage (“acid phase” then “methanogenic phase”). Feed was a 1:1 mixture of Thickened Waste Activated Sludge and Primary Sludge. The following anaerobic digestion configurations and operating parameters allowed the production of digested sludge with a mean FC concentration statistically less than 103 (the regulatory value for Class A sludge): thermophilic single stage acid phase at 52 and 62°C; thermophilic single stage acid + methane phase at 48°C, 52°C and 62°C; two-stage mesophilic acid phase followed by mesophilic methane phase; two stage mesophilic acid phase followed by thermophilic methane phase at 48°C, 52°C and 62°C. If the maximum digested FC concentration must be below 103 MPN/g TS then the following digester configurations and operating conditions will be compliant: two stage mesophilic acid phase followed by thermophilic methane phase at 52°C and 62°C.

2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Huub H.J. Cox ◽  
Steve Fan ◽  
Reza Iranpour

Terminal Island Treatment Plant converted its digesters to thermophilic operation with the objective to comply with the U.S. EPA Part 503 Biosolids Rule requirements for Class A biosolids. The following processes were tested: a) single-stage continuous; b) two-stage continuous; c) single-stage sequencing batch. Salmonella sp. were always non-detect in digester outflows (<3 MPN/4 g dry wt), whereas fecal coliform densities were usually below the Class A limit of 1000 MPN/g dry wt. However, the recurrence of fecal coliforms in post-digestion caused non-compliance with the Class A limit at the truck loading facility as the last point of plant control for compliance. After several design modifications of the post-digestion train, operation of the digesters as sequencing batch digesters according to the time-temperature requirement of Alternative 1 of the Part 503 Biosolids Rule achieved compliance for both Salmonella sp. and fecal coliforms at the last point of plant control (truck loading facility).


2006 ◽  
Vol 53 (8) ◽  
pp. 149-157 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Watts ◽  
G. Hamilton ◽  
J. Keller

A two-stage thermophilic-mesophilic anaerobic digestion pilot-plant was operated solely on waste activated sludge (WAS) from a biological nutrient removal (BNR) plant. The first-stage thermophilic reactor (HRT 2 days) was operated at 47, 54 and 60 °C. The second-stage mesophilic digester (HRT 15 days) was held at a constant temperature of 36–37 °C. For comparison with a single-stage mesophilic process, the mesophilic digester was also operated separately with an HRT of 17 days and temperature of 36–37 °C. The results showed a truly thermophilic stage (60 °C) was essential to achieve good WAS degradation. The lower thermophilic temperatures examined did not offer advantages over single-stage mesophilic treatment in terms of COD and VS removal. At a thermophilic temperature of 60 °C, the plant achieved 35% VS reduction, representing a 46% increase compared to the single-stage mesophilic digester. This is a significant level of degradation which could make such a process viable in situations where there is no primary sludge generated. The fate of the biologically stored phosphorus in this BNR sludge was also investigated. Over 80% of the incoming phosphorus remained bound up with the solids and was not released into solution during the WAS digestion. Therefore only a small fraction of phosphorus would be recycled to the main treatment plant with the dewatering stream.


Author(s):  
Armin Silaen ◽  
Ting Wang

Numerical simulations of the coal gasification process inside a generic 2-stage entrained-flow gasifier fed with Indonesian coal at approximately 2000 metric ton/day are carried out. The 3D Navier–Stokes equations and eight species transport equations are solved with three heterogeneous global reactions, three homogeneous reactions, and two-step thermal cracking equation of volatiles. The chemical percolation devolatilization (CPD) model is used for the devolatilization process. This study is conducted to investigate the effects of different operation parameters on the gasification process including coal mixture (dry versus slurry), oxidant (oxygen-blown versus air-blown), and different coal distribution between two stages. In the two-stage coal-slurry feed operation, the dominant reactions are intense char combustion in the first stage and enhanced gasification reactions in the second stage. The gas temperature in the first stage for the dry-fed case is about 800 K higher than the slurry-fed case. This calls for attention of additional refractory maintenance in the dry-fed case. One-stage operation yields higher H2, CO and CH4 combined than if a two-stage operation is used, but with a lower syngas heating value. The higher heating value (HHV) of syngas for the one-stage operation is 7.68 MJ/kg, compared with 8.24 MJ/kg for two-stage operation with 75%–25% fuel distribution and 9.03 MJ/kg for two-stage operation with 50%–50% fuel distribution. Carbon conversion efficiency of the air-blown case is 77.3%, which is much lower than that of the oxygen-blown case (99.4%). The syngas heating value for the air-blown case is 4.40 MJ/kg, which is almost half of the heating value of the oxygen-blown case (8.24 MJ/kg).


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Pedenaud ◽  
Marianna Rondon ◽  
Nicolas Lesage ◽  
Eric Tournis ◽  
Riccardo Giolo ◽  
...  

Abstract A new seawater laboratory pilot has been installed in order to evaluate the impact of the seawater quality on the performance of nanofiltration membranes and filters. The test program implemented was designed to produce the data required to optimize the design and operating parameters of a subsea sulfate removal plant, particularly with respect to the technology developed by Total, Saipem and Veolia, co-owners of the development. The equipment qualification plan is approaching completion with the development of subsea barrier-fluidless pumps, all-electric control systems, high-cycling valves operated by electric actuators and subsea water analyzers. This presented pilot laboratory study completes this plan. Nanofiltration membranes are commonly used to remove the sulfates found in seawater before the water is injected into wells. The principal advantages of relocating this equipment from topside to subsea are better reservoir sweep control, a substantial subsea water injection network reduction and savings on space and weight on the topsides deck. The move to subsea offers the opportunity to simplify the process due to improved deep water quality. This was previously demonstrated through a subsea test campaign. This new pilot study provides data both on the performance of a plant operating with different feed water quality and on the success of operating changes to further optimize the plant performance. The pilot has been installed at the Palavas-les-Flots site in France. Raw water collected from the basin was mixed with ultra-filtered water in order to calibrate the feed water quality. The pilot includes a two stage nanofiltration configuration and single stage nanofiltration unit. The two stage configuration was used to produce data for operation across an array of feed water quality and plant operating conditions. The single stage unit was used to produce data on membrane fouling over a long operating duration. Results from these tests and discussion on how this data relates to subsea plant performance shall be presented. This innovative approach enables a wide range of subsea water quality to be simulated and tested against different process configurations of the subsea unit. Indeed, for each industrial subsea application, the raw seawater quality is dependent on both the region and the depth of the seawater inlet. With this experimental data acquisition campaign and understanding of the seawater quality at inlet, the system design can be tailor-made for each future application case.


2021 ◽  
Vol 119 ◽  
pp. 172-182
Author(s):  
Jiří Rusín ◽  
Kateřina Chamrádová ◽  
Panagiotis Basinas

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