MBR Technology: future research directions

Cutting down the operational costs of MBR technology will be the key driver for research. This article outlines some research areas and specific topics that potentially will contribute to lower costs. Special attention to these topics should be given the coming years. Long term research should focus on sustainable MBR concepts. A few innovative developments will be presente

Cenirelta: Cost Effective NItrogen REmoval from wastewater with Low Temperature Anammox: Demonstratieproject anammox in de hoofdstroom op RWZI Dokhaven

De doelstelling van het CENIRELTA project was aan te tonen dat Anammox in de hoofdstroom van een rwzi een effectieve, robuuste, kosten-efficiënte en duurzame technologie biedt voor de verwijdering van stikstof uit huishoudelijk afvalwater. De effectiviteit en robuustheid van het hoofdstroom Anammox proces zijn beproefd op rwzi Dokhaven in Rotterdam. In hoofdstuk 2 wordt ingegaan op het materiaal en de methode op basis waarvan dit project is uitgevoerd. Daarna volgt een hoofdstuk met resultaten van de full scale A-trap op Dokhaven en sliblijn op slibverwerkingsbedrijf Sluisjesdijk. Hoofdstuk 4 focust uitsluitend op de resultaten van de demonstratie-installatie die gedurende 3,5 jaar operationeel is geweest op rwzi Dokhaven. In dit hoofdstuk komen ook de belangrijkste conclusies en aanbevelingen terug van dit specifieke onderdeel van het CENIRELTA project. In hoofdstuk 5 staan de resultaten van de economische analyse van het CENIRELTA concept voor een groene weide situatie. In hoofdstuk 6 komt kort de inpassing van de hoofdstroom Anammox op rwzi Dokhaven aan bod, met oog voor technologische en technische aspecten. Tot slot wordt er stilgestaan bij de hoofdconclusies en aanbevelingen van het CENIRELTA project.BT/Environmental Biotechnolog

Towards mainstream anammox: lessons learned from pilot-scale research at WWTP Dokhaven

The aim of this research was to study the biological feasibility of the Partial Nitritation/Anammox (PN/A) technology to remove nitrogen from municipal mainstream wastewaters. During stable process operations at summer temperatures (23.2 ± 1.3°C), the total nitrogen removal rate was 0.223 ± 0.029 kg N (m3 d)−1 while at winter temperatures (13.4 ± 1.1°C) the total nitrogen removal rate was 0.097 ± 0.016 kg N (m3 d)−1. Nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) suppression was successfully achieved at the complete temperature range of municipal mainstream wastewater. Despite the presence of NOB as observed in activity tests, their activity could be successfully suppressed due to a relative low dissolved oxygen concentration. An overcapacity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and anammox activity was always present. Long-term stability is a focus point for future research, especially in relation to the stability of the biological oxygen demand removing step, preceding the PN/A reactor.BT/Environmental Biotechnolog

Filtration Characterization Method as Tool to Assess Membrane Bioreactor Sludge Filterability—The Delft Experience

Prevention and removal of fouling is often the most energy intensive process in Membrane Bioreactors (MBRs), responsible for 40% to 50% of the total specific energy consumed in submerged MBRs. In the past decade, methods were developed to quantify and qualify fouling, aiming to support optimization in MBR operation. Therefore, there is a need for an evaluation of the lessons learned and how to proceed. In this article, five different methods for measuring MBR activated sludge filterability and critical flux are described, commented and evaluated. Both parameters characterize the fouling potential in full-scale MBRs. The article focuses on the Delft Filtration Characterization method (DFCm) as a convenient tool to characterize sludge properties, namely on data processing, accuracy, reproducibility, reliability, and applicability, defining the boundaries of the DFCm. Significant progress was made concerning fouling measurements in particular by using straight forward approaches focusing on the applicability of the obtained results. Nevertheless, a fouling measurement method is still to be defined which is capable of being unequivocal, concerning the fouling parameters definitions; practical and simple, in terms of set-up and operation; broad and useful, in terms of obtained results. A step forward would be the standardization of the aforementioned method to assess the sludge filtration quality.Water ManagementCivil Engineering and Geoscience