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Wastewater Treatment Process
Basic Features of the Treatment Process
- Screens to remove debris from the raw wastewater as it
enters the plant
- Aeration basins that provide for oxygenation and mixing of
active microorganisms with raw sewage (the activation process)
- A basin or clarifier to separate solids from the treated
effluent. Effluent is the term for liquid discharged from a
treatment plant.
- A system to return solids (also known as activated sludge)
from the clarifiers back to the aeration basins
- A system to waste or remove excess solids from either the
basin or clarifier thus controlling the solids mass
Operational Controls
- Controlling the oxygen level
- Controlling the rate that activated solids are returned to
the aeration basins
- Controlling the rate that solids are withdrawn from the
process
Functions of the Process, or Treatment
- Removal of carbonaceous organic material
- Oxidation of ammonia to nitrate
- Removal of nitrate
- Removal of phosphorus
Treated water is:
- Filtered to remove nearly all of the remaining solids
- Chlorinated to kill any potentially harmful microorganisms
- De-chlorinated to eliminate excess chlorine that could be
harmful to natural organisms when the water is discharged into a
stream
- The chlorination and de-chlorination system is used from May
through September each year when Coffee Creek, the stream (into
which the treated water is discharged) is likely to be used for
recreational purposes
Biosolids
- Are sludge that is wasted or removed from the primary treatment process
- Pumped to a gravity belt sludge thickener for dewatering
- Pumped to an aerobic digester for further treatment
- Pumped directly into a sludge lagoon, or a combination of the above
- After spending a required amount of time in the sludge lagoons,
biosolids are tested and applied to local farm land for crops such as
alfalfa or hay for stock feed
