Paper No.

: 05 Environmental Biotechnology

Module : 13 Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling

filter, rotating drums)

Principal Investigator: Dr Vibha Dhawan, Distinguished Fellow and Sr. Director

The Energy and Resouurces Institute (TERI), New Delhi

Co-Principal Investigator: Prof S K Jain, Professor, of Medical Biochemistry

JamiaHamdard University, New Delhi

Paper Coordinator: Dr Sanjukta Subudhi, Sr.Fellow,

The Energy and Resouurces Institute (TERI), New Delhi

Content Writer: Dr A Vijaya Chitra, Assistant Professor,

Sree Narayana Guru College, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu

Content Reviwer: Dr K Nantha Kumar, Fellow,

The Energy and Resouurces Institute (TERI), New Delhi

Environmental Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 Description of Module
Subject Name Biotechnology

Paper Name Environmental Biotechnology

Module Name/Title Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating
drums)
Module Id 13

Pre-requisites

Objectives

Keywords

Environmental Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 Table of contents
1. Learning Objectives
2. Introduction
3. Activated Sludge
4. Types of Activated sludge
5. Oxidation ditch
6. Trickling Filter
7. Rotating drums
8. Summary

1) Learning Objectives
This module is intended to provide the learner an overview on the aerobic treatment
systems used for the treatment of industrial wastewater. Currently, the industries are
using physico-chemical and biological methods in combination to treat the
wastewater. Among the biological methods, aerobic process plays a vital role in
treatment processes. Its an need of the hour to know the aerobic process treatment
systems used for treating effluent.
2) Introduction

The biological process for wastewater includes aerobic and anaerobic treatment. In
Aerobic treatment or process the microorganisms use oxygen from the environment to
degrade the organic matter and other pollutants present in the wastewater. Depending upon
the organic load and type of pollutant different treatments are used. The basic elements for
secondary biological treatment are microorganisms, oxygen availability, contact between the
organic material and the microbe and other environmental factors that bring in an efficient
degradation. Aerobic systems use either fixed film designs or continuous flow or suspended
growth aerobic systems and they include activated sludge, trickling filters and oxidation
ditch. The most commonly used aerobic treatment process is the activated sludge. In the
attached growth systems the most commonly used wastewater treatment systems are trickling
filters and rotating biological contactors (RBC). RBC utilize principles common to trickling
filter and activated sludge.
3) ACTIVATED SLUDGE

• Activated sludge is a process that uses a biological system to treat sewage or

industrial wastewater.

• In this process, the microbial consortium reduces the organic load of the wastewater
converting the organic matter into microbial biomass and Carbon di oxide.

• During growth and as well by aeration process the microbial biomass clump together
and occur as aggregates or flocs and is called as Activated Sludge.

Environmental Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 Process
The process of activated sludge involves the following steps
1. Aeration of wastewater
 Aeration provides oxygen and accomplishes mixing of wastewater and
microorganisms.
 Microorganisms utilize oxygen for growth.
 Diffused or surface mechanical aeration is used as the aeration source.
 Efficient operation of activated sludge process requires a constant supply of
oxygen.
 Single or multiple aeration tanks are used depending upon the type of activated
sludge process.
 Mixture of microbes or activated sludge and wastewater is called mixed liquor.

2. Solid liquid separation

 In the settling tank, the mixed liquor solid is separated from the treated effluent
or wastewater.
 The biomass as flocculent sludge settles down.
 Several secondary clarifiers are also employed in some treatment plant
operations

3. Discharge of treated effluent

 The treated effluent is discharged from the secondary clarifier as clear water

Fig 1: Activated sludge system

Source: http://www.kelvinindia.in/activated-sludge-process.html

Environmental Biotechnology
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Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 4. Return of settled sludge to aeration tank
 A part of the solids settled in the clarifier is returned to the aeration tank to
maintain the concentration of the microorganisms.
 This portion of floc is called as return sludge

5. Disposal of remaining activated sludge

 Excess activated sludge is sent to disposal or sludge handling system to maintain
the system at a steady state
 Disposal of excess sludge is to uphold appropriate concentration of
microorganisms in the aeration system and to efficiently degrade the BOD
 Excess microorganisms removed from the activated sludge system are called as
Waste Activated sludge (WAS).

A balance is always maintained between the growth of new organisms and their
removal by wasting. Wastage of more sludge decreases the concentration of microorganisms
in the mixed liquor that will ultimately affect the treatment process. Low removal of sludge
results in large concentration of microorganisms which will reach the secondary tank and
reaches the receiving stream.
4) Types of Activated Sludge

Conventional activated sludge processes are modified to meet different or specific treatment
process. The modified activated sludge types includes
• Conventional Plug flow

• Complete – Mix

• Tapered aeration

• Step-feed aeration

• Modified aeration

• Contact stabilization

• Extended aeration

• High-rate aeration

Conventional Plug flow

 The wastewater and recycled activated sludge enter the head of aeration tank

Environmental Biotechnology
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Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
  Mixing of the influent and recycled activated sludge is carried out by diffused air or
mechanical aeration with consistent aeration throughout the tank
 Adsorption, flocculation and oxidation of organic matter occurs during the aeration
process.

Complete – mix
 This process involves the introduction of the influent and recycled activated sludge at
several points in the aeration tank
 The organic load on the aeration tank and the oxygen demand are uniform throughout
the tank length

Tapered Aeration
 Varying rates of aeration are applied at different points over the tank depending on the
requirement of oxygen demand.
 Maximum air is applied at the beginning and it is reduced in steps towards end, hence
it is called as tapered aeration
 This is done by using different spacing of the air diffusers over the tank length

Step-feed
 The wastewater is introduced at several points in the aeration tank to equalize F/M
ratio
 Equalizing F/M ratio reduces oxygen demand
 Aeration is uniform

Modified aeration
 This process involves the entry of wastewater and recycled activated sludge at the
entry of aeration tank.
 Aeration duration ranges from 1.5 – 2 hrs, which is lesser than conventional plug flow
process.
 Have higher F/M ratios
 The sludge produced by this process is compact and easily digestible.

Factors affecting activated sludge process:

 pH
 temperature
 the type of the reactor
 aeration
 food
 microorganism (F/M) ratio,
 nutrients
 sludge recirculation rate

Environmental Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 Advantages of activated sludge
 Removes suspended solids
 Nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal
 Solids and liquids separation
 Removes organics
 Effective in removing pathogens

Disadvantages of activated sludge

 Process quality gets affected by change in volume of sewage or sewage
characteristics
 High operation cost
 Large scale sludge disposal
 Skilled supervision required to check that the returned sludge remains active

5) OXIDATION DITCH

• An oxidation ditch is a modified activated sludge biological treatment process that

uses long solids retention times (SRTs) to remove biodegradable organics.

• This treatment system consists of an elliptical or ring shaped basin. Aerators are
mounted horizontally or vertically in the basin

• The aeration equipment called the aeration rotor provides aeration as well circulates
the wastewater or the effluent and this allows the waste water to have plenty of
exposure to the open air for the diffusion of oxygen.

• The dissolved oxygen in the wastewater increase and gradually decreases as

microorganisms take it for biomass production

• The oxidation ditch effluent is clarified in a separate secondary clarifier and the
settled sludge is returned to maintain a desirable MLSS concentration.

• The MLSS concentration in the oxidation ditch generally ranges from 3,000 mg/ L to
5,000 mg/ L

• The MLSS concentration in the oxidation ditch depends upon the surface area
provided for sedimentation, the rate of sludge return, and the aeration process.

• Longer retention time within the ditch will allow for a greater amount of organic
matter to be broken down by the aerobic bacteria.

Environmental Biotechnology
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Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 • After treatment, the waste water is pumped to a secondary settling tank where the
sludge and the water are allowed to separate.

• From there the effluent goes on to other treatment processes or disposal.

• Pasveer and Carrousel types of oxidation ditches are extended aeration systems

Fig 2: Oxidation ditch

Source: http://www.thewatertreatments.com/wastewater-sewage-treatment/oxidation-
ditch-sewage-treatment/
Advantages
 Withstands high shock load or hydraulic surge.
 Moderate operating cost
 Reliable technology over other biological processes.
 Highly effective compared to other process
 Less sludge production compared with other biological treatments as the process has
an extended biological activity
 Energy efficient process

Disadvantages
 Construction and working requires large area of land.
 Requires high capital cost
 High concentration of suspended solids

6) TRICKLING FILTER

 Its an aerobic biological process for sewage and waste water treatment

 Also called as biological trickling filter

 This system utilizes microorganisms attached to the material such as stones, slats or
plastic to remove or degrade organic matter

Environmental Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 Process
 Trickling filter consists of a cylindrical tank and contains a bed of coarse materials
such as rocks, slats, gravel, PVC bottles or preformed plastic material that provide a
high surface area

 The wastewater is trickled over the surface of the sand, gravel or any packing material

 Rocks provide surface area for biofilm formation

 When wastewater is trickled, microorganisms come in contact with the organics and
metabolize it.

 This results in slime layer thickness. The biological film is rich in the bacteria-
Pseudomonas, Flavobacterium, Alcaligenes, and algae-Chlorella, Ulothrix, and
Stigeoclonium, besides some fungi and yeasts. Biofilms with a thickness in the range
of 70 -100 pm are efficient for the treatment process.

 Oxygen penetration to the medium is slowed because of excess thickness of biofilm

formation.

 Anaerobic organisms start developing

Fig 3: Trickling filter

Source: https://dir.indiamart.com/impcat/trickling-filters.html

• Increase in biofilm growth, makes the microorganisms sloughs from the media
surface, thereby a portion of biofilm falls and is washed out of the bed by the
wastewater

Environmental Biotechnology
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Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 • These solids from the filter sediments in a sedimentation tank called the final clarifier.

Classification of trickling filters

• Classification of trickling filters is mainly based upon the hydraulic and organic load

• Hydraulic load

– Expressed in cubic meters of wastewater applied per day per square meter of
bulk filter surface area or depth of water applied per unit time (m/d)

• Organic loading
- Expressed as Kilograms of 5 day 20◦C BOD per day per cubic meter of
bulk filter volume (kg/d.m3)

• Recirculation

– In trickling filter, provision is provided for return of a portion of the effluent to

flow throught the filter called as recirculation.

– Recirculation ratio is the returned flow to the incoming flow ratio

• Based upon the hydraulic and organic load, the trickling filter is classified in to

 Low rate filters

 Intermediate rate filters

 High rate filters

 Super rate filters

 Roughing filters

Design feature Low rate Intermediate High rate Super rate Roughing
rate
Hydraulic loading 1 to 4 4 to 10 10 to 40 15 to 90 60 to 180
m/d

Organic loading 0.08 to 0.32 0.24 to 0.48 0.32 to 1.0 0.32 to 1.0 Above 1.0
kg BOD5/d.m3

Depth (m) 1.5 to 3 1.5 to 2.5 1 to 2 Up to 12 1 to 6

Recirculation ratio 0 0 to 1 1 to 3 0 to 1 1 to 4

Sloughing Intermittent Varies Continuous Continuous Continuous

Environmental Biotechnology
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Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 Roughing filters are a special type of trickling filters that operate at high hydraulic
Ioading rates. These reduce the organic matter in downstream processing.
Advantages:
 Low operating cost
 Sludge removal is easy
 Low power requirements
 Efficient in removal of ammonia
 Produce less sludge than suspended growth systems

Disadvantages
 Treated effluent should be treated additionally to meet the discharge standards
 Odour and vector problem
 High incidence of Clogging

7) ROTATING BIOLOGICAL DRUMS

 It operates on the principle of aerobic attached growth system operated on the moving
media.
 RBC are suitable for the treatment of domestic sewage and industrial effluent
 Rotating biological contactors (RBC), are also called as rotating biological filters
 They are fixed-bed reactors
 RBC contains closely spaced discs that will provide surface for growth of
microorganisms
 Disc are partially submerged in the wastewater tank and rotated at about 3-6 rpm
 Discs are made of plastic, PVC or polyvinyl foam

Process
 When the process begins, microbes in wastewater attach to the rotating discs and
grow until entire surface is covered with 1 to 3 mm layer of biological slime
 Rotation makes the disc to expose a film of wastewater to air
 The wastewater flows down the disc absorbing oxygen
 Once the full rotation is complete, the film of water mixes with the reservoir and
increases or adds the concentration of oxygen and also mixes treated effluent with the
partially treated
 Attached microbes also take up the organics in the reservoir for breakdown when the
rotating disc is submerged
 Excess growth of microbes is cut off or removed from the rotating disc as they move
through the reservoir
 Removed microbes fall into the reservoir
 Reduction of 80 to 90 % biological oxygen demand (BOD)

Environmental Biotechnology
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Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 Fig 4: Rotating drums
Source:http://www.aqua-aerobic.com/index.cfm/products-systems/biological-
processes/aqua-biomax/
Advantages
 Low space requirement
 High contact time and
 high effluent quality
 High process stability,
 resistant to shock hydraulic or organic loading
 Short contact periods
 Low sludge production

Disadvantages
 Continuous electricity supply
 Contact media not available at local market
 Requires huge investment for operation and maintenance
 Protection against varied climatic factors such as sunlight, wind and rain is
indispensable
 Odour problems
 Requires skilled technical labour for operation and maintenance

Environmental Biotechnology
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Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)
 8) Summary
Aerobic process of wastewater treatment mainly involves the fixed bed
process or suspended growth systems. Any industry in order to meet the requirement
for safe disposal of effluent have to treat their effluents before discharge and also
should meet the standards before disposal. The systems such as trickling filter,
activated sludge, oxidatichion ditch and rotating drums help the industry in meeting
their need.

Environmental Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Aerobic processes (activated sludge, oxidation ditches, trickling filter, rotating drums)