• SEWAGE TREATMENT

Primary Treatment
• The objective of primary treatment is the removal of settle-able organic and
inorganic solids.

• Approximately 25 to 50% of the incoming biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5),

50 to 70% of the total suspended solids (SS).

• It may be considered sufficient treatment if the wastewater is used to irrigate

crops that are not consumed by humans or to irrigate orchards, vineyards, and
some processed food crops.

• Primary sedimentation tanks or clarifiers may be round or rectangular basins,

typically 3 to 5 m deep, with hydraulic retention time between 2 and 3 hours.

5
RACKS &
SCREENS...
screen is a device with openings for removing bigger
suspended or floating matter in sewage which
would otherwise damage equipment or interfere
with satisfactory operation of treatment units.
Figure Definition sketch for types of screens used in wastewater treatment
 Screening
• These consist of bars usually spaced three-quarter inches to
six inches. Those most commonly used provide clear
openings of one to two inches.
• They are usually set at an angle of 45 to 60 degrees with the
vertical.
• The racks or screens may be cleaned either manually or by
means of automatically operated rakes.

11
Design Consideration
Velocity
 The velocity of flow ahead of and through the screen
varies and affects its operation.
 The lower the velocity through the screen, the greater
is the amount of screenings that would be removed
from sewage.
 However, the lower the velocity, the greater would be
the amount of solids deposited in the channel.
 Hence, the design velocity should be such as to permit
100% removal of material of certain size without
undue depositions.
 Velocities of 0.6 to 1.2 mps through the open area for
the peak flows have been used satisfactorily.
 Further, the velocity at low flows in the approach
channel should not be less than 0.3 mps to avoid
deposition of solids.
Head loss

 Head loss varies with the quantity and nature of

screenings allowed to accumulate between cleanings.
 Head loss through screens mainly depends on:
Size and amount of solids in waste water
Clear openings between bar
 Method of cleaning and its frequency
Velocity of flow through the screens
The head loss through clean flat bar screens is
calculated from the following formula:
h = 0.0729 (V2 - v2)
where, h = head loss in m
V = velocity through the screen in mps
v = velocity before the screen in mps
GRIT CHAMBER...
Grit chambers are basin to remove the
inorganic particle like sand, gravel ,
grit,egg shells,bones etc,
(specific gravity about 2.65)
to prevent damage to the pumps, and o
revent their accumulation in sludge
digesters.
 Grit Chamber
• Wastewater usually contains a relatively large amount of
inorganic solids such as sand, cinders and gravel which are
collectively called grit
• Grit chambers are usually located ahead of pumps or
comminuting devices, and if mechanically cleaned, should be
preceded by coarse bar rack screens. The detention period is
usually between 20 seconds to 1.0 minute.
• Grit chambers are
aerated by providing
Outside air to help in
Its settlement.

20
Types of Grit Chambers
 Mechanically cleaned
 Manually cleaned
 In mechanically cleaned grit chamber, scraper blades
collect the grit settled on the floor of the grit chamber.
 The grit so collected is elevated to the ground level by
several mechanisms such as bucket elevators, jet pump
and air lift.
 Manually cleaned grit chambers should be cleaned at
least once a week.
 The simplest method of cleaning is by means of
shovel.
Aerated Grit Chamber

 An aerated grit chamber consists of a standard spiral

flow aeration tank provided with air diffusion tubes
placed on one side of the tank.
 The grit particles tend to settle down to the bottom of
the tank.
 Settling rates dependant upon the particle size and the
bottom velocity of roll of the spiral flow.
Determination of settling velocity
Transition law:
 The design of grit chamber is based on removal of grit
particles with minimum size of 0.15 mm and therefore
Stoke's law is not applicable to determine the settling
velocity of grit particles for design purposes.

v2 = 4g(ρs-ρw)d
3 CDρw
Where:
g= acceleration due to gravity (assume 9.81 m/s2)
ρw= density of water (1000 Kg/m3)
ρs= density of solid particles
(normally of specific gravity 2.65=2.65*1000=2650
Kg/m3)
d= dia of particles
CD= coefficient of drag force depends on flow condition
Design criteria
 Recommended for horizontal flow and aerated grit
chamber.
 Flow= maximum
 Detention time= 30-90 s (usually 60 s)
 Flow through velocity, vh= 0.2-0.4 m/s (usually 0.3 m/s)
 Settling velocity= 0.016-0.021 m/s for 0.2 mm dia particle
= 0.01-0.015 m/s for 0.15 mm dia particles
 Liquid depth= 1-1.5 m
 Length= 3-25 m
 Quantity of grits= 0.022-0.075 m3/1000 m3 of flow
DETRITUS

TANKS...
 DETRITUS

TANKS...
Detritus tanks are nothing but rectangular grit chambers.
Designed to flow with smaller velocities -0.09m/sec
Longer detension period 3-4 minits
Separate larger grits and small sand particles
Controlled aeration of flow
Grit removal by scrapper mechanism
All details same as that of rectangular grit
chambers
•
• Skimming Tank
Skimming Tank
The floating solid materials such as soap, vegetables,
debris, fruit skins, pieces of corks, etc.
and oil and grease are removed from the wastewater in
skimming tanks.

A skimming tank is a chamber designed so that floating

matter rises and remains on surface of the wastewater
until removed, while the liquid flows continuously
through outlet or partition below the water
lines.
• The detention time in skimming tank is 3 minutes. To
prevent heavy solids from settling at the bed,
compressed air is blown through the diffusers placed in
the floor of the tank.
• Due to compress air supply, the oily matters rise upward
and are collected in the side trough, from where they are
removed.
• In conventional sewage treatment plant separate
skimming tank is not used and these materials are
removed by providing baffle ahead of the effluent end of
the primary sedimentation tank.
• Primary Sedimentation Tank
 Primary Sedimentation Tank

• Effluent of the grit chamber, containing mainly lightweight organic

matter, is settled in the primary sedimentation tanks.
•
• The objective of treatment by sedimentation is to remove readily
settleable solids and floating material and thus to reduce the
suspended solids content when they are used as preliminary step to
biological treatment, their function is to reduce the load on the
biological treatment units.

• The primary sedimentation tanks are usually designed for a flow

through velocity of 1 cm/sec
• at average rate of flow.

• The detention period in the range of 90 to 150 minutes may be used

for design.
• These tanks may be square, circular, or rectangular in
plan with depth varying from 2.3 to 5 m.
• The diameter of circular tanks may be up to 40 m.
• The width of rectangular tank may be 10 to 25 m and the
length may be up to 100 m.
• But to avoid water currents due to wind, length is limited
up to 40 m.
• The slope of sludge hoppers in these tanks is generally
2:1 (vertical: horizontal). The slope of 1% is normally
provided at the bed for rectangular tanks and 7.5 to 10%
for circular tanks.
• This slope is necessary so that solids may slide to the
bottom by gravity.
AERATION UNITS...
 Unit process in which air and water are brought into
intimate contact.
 The contact time and ratio of air to water must be
sufficient for exchange sufficient oxygen.
Advantages
Providing O2 for purification and improving overall
quality.
CO2 reduction-reduces the corrosion.
Raising the pH.
VOC removal
Effective method for bacterial control
Methods of aeration

Diffused aeration

Spray aeration

Turbine aeration

Surface aeration
Diffused aeration
 Providing maximum water surface per unit volume of
air.
 Air bubbles brought with water in a mixing or contact
chamber.
 A common way to aerate water is via diffused air.
 Air is pumped through some sort of diffuser to
generate small bubbles.
 Usually gas is injected into the bottom of the aeration
tank and is allowed to rise to the surface in an open
tank.
 The rising bubbles transfer oxygen to the water, as well
as transport bottom water to the surface.
 The bubbles raising through water create turbulence.
 Untreated water is allowed to enter the tank from top
and exit from bottom.
Efficiency of diffused aeration can be improved:

Fine bubbles (0.2 cm dia) as compared to

coarse bubble (2.5 cm dia)
By increasing water depth (9-15 ft)
By improving the basin geometry (width to
depth ratio not exceed 2)
By increasing the retention time (10-30 min)
Typical diffused aeration system looks like:
There are a large variety of diffuser types. For example ceramic
plates
These plates are arranged on manifolds at the bottom of
aeration tanks as shown here.
Other types of diffusers include coarse aerators
Again, these diffusers would be arranged by a manifold
on the bottom of an aeration tank.
Mechanical Aeration
Basically there are two types of mechanical aeration.

Turbine Aeration:
 In this system coarse bubbles are injected into the
bottom of the tank and then a turbine shears the
bubbles for better oxygen transfer.
 Efficiency of turbine aerators is generally higher than
diffused aeration.
Surface Aeration:

In this case a mixing device is used to agitate the

surface so that there is increased interfacial area
between liquid and air.
There are many different proprietary types of
surface aerators .
Common surface aerators
Design consideration for mechanical aerators is usually
based on Eckenfelder and Ford equation.

 Cw Cl 
N  N0 
 T20 
  (1.02) 
 9.17 

Notice that there is no depth consideration for

mechanical aeration.
Where as:

 N = actual transfer rate (lb-O2/hr)

 N0 = manufacturer specified transfer rate ( lb/hr)
for clean water, 20oC, zero DO.
 Cw = saturation value for oxygen for wastewater
under operating conditions.
 9.17 = saturation DO for clean water, 20oC.
 Cl = the design oxygen concentration in the
aeration basin.
 T = Temp.
 α = oxygen transfer correction factor for waste
water
SEDIMENTATION
TANKS...
Solid liquid separation process in which a
suspension is separated into two phases –
Clarified supernatant leaving the top of the
sedimentation tank (overflow).
Concentrated sludge leaving the bottom of the
sedimentation tank (underflow).
Purpose of Settling

To remove coarse dispersed phase.

To remove coagulated and flocculated
impurities.
To remove precipitated impurities after
chemical treatment.
To settle the sludge (biomass) after activated
sludge process / tricking filters.
Principle of Settling
 Suspended solids present in water having specific
gravity greater than that of water tend to settle down by
gravity as soon as the turbulence is retarded by offering
storage.
 Basin in which the flow is retarded is called settling
tank.
 Theoretical average time for which the water is
detained in the settling tank is called the detention
period.
Types of Settling
Type I settling (free settling)
Type II settling (settling of flocculated
particles)
Type III settling (zone or hindered
settling)
Type IV settling (compression settling)
Design parameters for settling tank
Overflow rate Solids loading Detentio
Types of settling Depth
m3m2/day kg/m2/day n time
Average Peak Average Peak

Primary settling only 25-30 50-60 - - 2.5-3.5 2.0-2.5

Primary settling followed by
35-50 60-120 - - 2.5-3.5
secondary treatment
Primary settling with
25-35 50-60 - - 3.5-4.5 -
activated sludge return
Secondary settling for
15-25 40-50 70-120 190 2.5-3.5 1.5-2.0
trickling filters
Secondary settling for
activated sludge (excluding 15-35 40-50 70-140 210 3.5-4.5 -
extended aeration)
Secondary settling for
8-15 25-35 25-120 170 3.5-4.5 -
extended aeration
Design Details
Detention period: for plain sedimentation: 3 to
4 h, and for coagulated sedimentation: 2 to 2.5
h.
Velocity of flow: Not greater than 30 cm/min
(horizontal flow).
Tank dimensions: L:B = 3 to 5:1. Generally L=
30 m (common) maximum 100 m. Breadth= 6
m to 10 m. Circular: Diameter not greater than
60 m. generally 20 to 40 m.
Depth 2.5 to 5.0 m (3 m).
Surface Overflow Rate: For plain sedimentation
12000 to 18000 L/d/m2 tank area; for
thoroughly flocculated water 24000 to 30000
L/d/m2 tank area.
Slopes: Rectangular 1% towards inlet and
circular 8%.
• Secondary Treatment
 Secondary Treatment
• The objective of secondary treatment is the further treatment
of the effluent from primary treatment to remove the residual
organics and suspended solids.
• secondary treatment follows primary treatment and involves
the removal of biodegradable dissolved and colloidal organic
matter using aerobic biological treatment processes.
• High-rate biological processes are characterized by relatively
small reactor volumes and high concentrations of
microorganisms compared with low rate processes.
• The biological solids removed during secondary
sedimentation, called secondary or biological sludge, are
normally combined with primary sludge for sludge processing.

62
Common high-rate processes includes -
• Trickling filters or bio filters
• Oxidation ponds,
• ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS.

63
TRICKLING FILTER
PROCESSES…
 Trickling Filters
• A trickling filter or bio filter consists of a basin or tower filled
with support media such as stones, plastic shapes, or wooden
slats.
• Wastewater is applied intermittently, or sometimes
continuously, over the media. Microorganisms become
attached to the media and form a biological layer or fixed film.

• .
• Forced air can also be supplied by blowers but this is rarely
necessary. The thickness of the biofilm increases as new
organisms grow. Periodically, portions of the film 'slough off
the media.
• The sloughed material is separated from the liquid in a
secondary clarifier and discharged to sludge processing.
68
69
 Trickling filter is an attached growth process i.e. process
in which microorganisms responsible for treatment are
attached to an inert packing material. Packing material
used in attached growth processes include rock, gravel,
slag, sand, redwood, and a wide range of plastic and
other synthetic materials.
Process Description
 The wastewater in trickling filter is distributed over
the top area of a vessel containing non-submerged
packing material.
 Air circulation in the void space, by either natural
draft or blowers, provides
oxygen for the
microorganisms
growing as an attached
biofilm.
 The organic material present in the wastewater
metabolised by the biomass attached to the medium.
 The biological slime grows in thickness as the
organic matter abstracted from the flowing
wastewater is synthesized into new cellular
material.
Flow Diagram for Trickling Filters
Recirculation= A portion of the TF effluent recycled through the filter
Recirculation ratio (R) = returned flow (Or)/ influent flow (Q)

Recycle Or
Final
clarifier

Q Final
Influent effluent

Primary Waste
clarifier sludge
Trickling
filter
Advantages

 simplicity of operation

 resistance to shock loads

 low sludge yield

 low power requirements

Disadvantages

 relatively low BOD removal (85%)

 high suspended solids in the effluent (20 -30

mg/L)

 little operational control

Types of Filters
Trickling filters are classified as high rate or low rate,
based on the organic and hydraulic loading applied to the
unit.

S.No. Design Feature Low Rate Filter High Rate Filter

Hydraulic loading,
1. 1-4 10 - 40
m3/m2.d
Organic loading,kg
2. 0.08 - 0.32 0.32 - 1.0
BOD / m3.d
3. Depth, m. 1.8 - 3.0 0.9 - 2.5
0.5 - 3.0 (domestic
wastewater) up to 8 for
4. Recirculation ratio 0
strong industrial
wastewater.
 The high rate trickling filter, single stage or two
stage are recommended for medium to relatively
high strength domestic and industrial
wastewater.
 The BOD removal efficiency is around 75 to 90%.
 Single stage unit consists of a primary settling
tank, filter, secondary settling tank and facilities
for recirculation of the effluent.
 Two stage filters consist of two filters in series
with a primary settling tank, an intermediate
settling tank which may be omitted in certain
cases and a final settling tank.
ACTIVATED SLUDGE
PROCESSES…
 The most common suspended growth process used
for municipal wastewater treatment is the
activated sludge process.
Activated sludge plant involves:

1.wastewater aeration in the presence of a

microbial suspension,
2.solid-liquid separation following aeration,
3.discharge of clarified effluent,
4.wasting of excess biomass, and
5.return of remaining biomass to the aeration
tank.
• The process involves air or oxygen being introduced into a
mixture of primary treated or screened sewage or
industrial wastewater combined with organisms to develop
a biological floc which reduces the organic content of
the sewage.
• The combination of wastewater and biological mass is
commonly known as mixed liquor.( The combination of raw sewage
and biological mass is commonly known as Mixed Liquor.)
• In all activated sludge plants, once the wastewater has
received sufficient treatment, excess mixed liquor is
discharged into settling tanks and the
treated supernatant is run off to undergo further treatment
before discharge.
• Part of the settled material, the sludge, is returned to the
head of the aeration system to re-seed the new
wastewater entering the tank.
• This fraction of the floc is called return activated
sludge (R.A.S.). Excess sludge is called surplus
activated sludge(S.A.S.) or waste activated sludge(W.A.S).
• S.A.S is removed from the treatment process to keep the
ratio of biomass to food supplied in the wastewater in
balance.
• S.A.S is stored in sludge tanks and is further treated by
digestion, either under anaerobic or aerobic conditions
prior to disposal.
Advantages
 Removes organics
 Oxidation and Nitrification achieved
 Biological nitrification without adding chemicals
 Biological Phosphorus removal
 Solids/ Liquids separation
 Stabilization of sludge
 Capable of removing ~ 97% of suspended solids
 The most widely used wastewater treatment process
Disadvantages
 Does not remove color from industrial wastes and
may increase the color through formation of highly
colored intermediates through oxidation

 Does not remove nutrients, tertiary treatment is

necessary

 Problem of getting well settled sludge

 Recycle biomass keeps high biomass concentration

in aeration tanks
Design Consideration
 The quality or characteristics of raw waste water to be
treated.

 The desired quality or characteristics of effluent or

treated waste water.

 The type of reactor that will be used.

 Volumetric and organic loading that will be applied to

the reactor.
 Amount of O2 required and the aeration system will
provide to supply O2 and to support mixing.

 The quantity of sludge that will be generated and

wasted for its further management.

 Besides these nutrient requirements of microbes,

environmental conditions under which plant operated.
Design steps
The design computations require the
determination of:

Volume or dimensions of the aeration tank

Amount of O2 required and power needed for
aeration
Quantity of sludge that will produced for particular
waste and treatment conditions
 Volume and dimensions of sec. settling tank
 Activated Sludge
The basic activated sludge process has
several interrelated components. These
components are
1. aeration tank
2. aeration source
3. clarifier
4. recycle
5. waste
10-Feb-20 Activated Sludge Process 90
 Activated Sludge
Aeration tank. A single tank or multiple tanks designed generally for either
complete mix or plug flow with a detention time of as little as 2 hours and
up to over 24 hours. The contents of the aeration tank are referred to as
mixed liquor.

Aeration source. Generally either diffused air or surface mechanical

aeration used to supply oxygen and mix the aeration tank contents.

Clarifier. A settling tank where the mixed liquor solids are separated from
the treated wastewater. Most treatment plants employ several secondary
clarifiers.

Recycle. Solids that settle in the clarifier and are returned to the aeration
tank.

Waste. Excess solids that must be removed from the system.

10-Feb-20 Activated Sludge Process 91

• Oxidation Ponds
 Oxidation Ponds
• Oxidation ponds are the stabilization ponds, which received
partially treated sewage.
• It is an earthen pond dug into the ground with shallow depth.
• The pond should be at least 1.0 m deep to discourage growth
of aquatic weeds and should not exceed 1.8 m.
• The detention time in the pond is usually 1 to 4 weeks
depending upon sunlight and temperature.
• Better efficiency of treatment is obtained if several ponds are
placed in series so that the sewage flows progressively from
one to another unit until it is finally discharged.
• The surface area of the pond may be worked out by assuming
a suitable value of organic loading which may range from 150
–300 kg/ha/d in hot tropical countries like India.
• Each unit may have an area ranging between 0.5 to 1.0
hectare.
• The length of the tank may be kept about twice the width.
• A free board of about 1 m may also be provided above a
capacity corresponding to 20-30 days of detention period.
• Properly operated ponds may be as effective as trickling filter
in reducing the BOD of sewage.
• The BOD removal efficiency of pond is up to 90% and
Coliform removal efficiency of pond is upto 99%.
• ANAEROBIC TREATMENT
• Anaerobic digestion
• Anaerobic digestion is a series of biological
processes in which microorganisms break
down biodegradable material in the
absence of oxygen. One of the end
products is biogas, which is combusted to
generate electricity and heat, or can be
processed into renewable natural gas and
transportation fuels.
 Anaerobic digestOrs
• Septic tank
• Soak pit
Low Cost Sanitation
System

Septic Systems
Septic tank
All household wastewater systems will have
a septic tank
Microbial action digests solid wastes
Liquids flow through tank to disposal area
Tank size
-1000 gallon liquid capacity (4-BR house or less)
-Add 250 gallons per additional bedroom
System Components
Source

Well
Tank Drainfield

Treatment in Soil

Groundwater
Role of the septic tank
Anaerobic fermentation of solids
Reduce the load of pathogens in the effluent
Hold the effluent for 2-3 days for improved
safety
Retain solid material to prevent blockage of
further disposal system
The field requires periodic
maintenance.

Diversion of the flow at distribution

box and repacking of the rock fill,
removal of plant roots etc.
Soak pit
Soak pit

 Soak Pit, also known as a soak away or leach pit, is

a covered, porous-walled chamber that allows
water to slowly soak into the ground.

 Pre-settled effluent from a Collection and

Storage/Treatment technology is discharged to
the underground chamber from where it
infiltrates into the surrounding soil.
 The Soak Pit can be left empty and lined with a
porous material (to provide support and prevent
collapse), or left unlined and filled with coarse
rocks and gravel.
 The rocks and gravel will prevent the walls from
collapsing, but will still provide adequate space for
the wastewater.
 In both cases, a layer of sand and fine gravel
should be spread across the bottom to help
disperse the flow.
 The soak pit should be between 1.5 and 4m deep,
but never less than 1.5m above the ground water
table.
As wastewater (pre-treated grey water or
black water) percolates through the soil
from the Soak Pit, small particles are
filtered out by the soil matrix and organics
are digested by micro-organisms.

Thus, Soak Pits are best suited to soils with

good absorptive properties; clay, hard
packed or rocky soils are not appropriate.
Advantages/Disadvantages
Advantages Disadvantages
 Can be built and repaired  Pre-treatment is required to
with locally available prevent clogging, although
materials. eventual clogging is
Small land area required. inevitable.
 Low capital cost; low  May negatively affect soil and
operating cost. groundwater properties.
 Can be built and maintained
with locally available
materials.
 Simple technique for all
users.
Health Aspects
 Soak Pit is not used for raw sewage, and as long as
the previous Collection and Storage/Treatment
technology is functioning well, health concerns are
minimal.
 The technology is located underground and thus,
humans and animals should have no contact with
the effluent.
 It is important however, that the Soak Pit is located
a safe distance from a drinking water source (ideally
30m).
 Since the Soak Pit is odourless and not visible, it
should be accepted by even the most sensitive
communities.
Maintenance
 A well-sized Soak Pit should last between 3 and 5
years without maintenance.
 To extend the life of a Soak Pit, care should be
taken to ensure that the effluent has been clarified
and/or filtered well to prevent excessive build up of
solids.
 The Soak Pit should be kept away from high-traffic
areas so that the soil above and around it is not
compacted.
 When the performance of the Soak Pit
deteriorates, the material inside the soak pit can be
excavated and refilled.
 To allow for future access, a removable (preferably
concrete) lid should be used to seal the pit until it
needs to be maintained.
•CHARACTERISTICS
OF
SEWAGE
• 1. physical characteristics
• 2. chemical characteristics
• 3. biological characteristics
 i. PHYSICAL
CHARACTERISTICS

• 1. TURBIDITY
• 2. COLOUR
• 3. ODOUR
• 4. TEMPERATURE
• 1. Colour •
• The colour of the sewage indicates the freshness of
sewage.
• If it’s colour is greyish brown or yellowish, it indicates
fresh sewage.
• With passage of time, as putrefaction starts it begins to
get black. The colour of stale and septic sewage is
black( When all the oxygen has disappeared from
sewage, it becomes septic).
• Other colors may also be formed due to presence of
some specific industrial waste. The color of the sewage
can normally be detected by the naked eye.
• 2.Odour • The odour of a fresh sewage is
not offensive or practically it can be
considered odourless,
• but as it starts to get stale, it begins to
give offensive odour.
• Within 3 to 4 hours, all oxygen present in
the sewage gets exhausted and it starts
emitting offensive odour by hydrogen
sulphide gas which is formed due to
anaerobic decomposition of sewage.
• Temperature • The temperature has an effect on the biological
activity of bacteria present in the sewage and it also affects
the solubility of gases in sewage.
• It also affects the viscosity of sewage (more is the temperature,
lesser is the viscosity of sewage). •
• The normal temperature, of sewage is slightly higher than the
temperature of the water supply because of the additional
heat due to utilization of water. Also when the wastewater
flows in a closed pipes, its temperature future increases.
• The average temperature of sewage in India is about 20 0 C
which is near about ideal temperature of sewage for
biological activities.
• At higher temperature coupled with the lower dissolved
oxygen activities can cause serious problems in disposal of
waste water.
• Turbidity • Sewage is normally turbid representing
dirty dish water or wastewater from baths having
other floating matter like fecal matter, pieces of
paper, cigarette ends, match sticks, greases,
vegetable debris, fruit skins, soaps, etc..
• The turbidity depends on the quantity of solid matter
present in suspension state. The turbidity can be
determined by the turbidity rod or by turbidimeters
e.g. Nephlometric
ii.ChemicalCharacteristics
1. Total solids, suspended solids, and settleable
solids
2. Ph value
3. chloride content
4. nitrogen content
5. presence of fat, greases, and oils
6.Sulphides, Sulphates and Hydrogen Gas
7. dissolved oxygen
8. Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)
9. BIO Chemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)
• 1. Solids •
• sewage normally contain 99.9 % water
and only 0.1 % of total solids ,
• may be in any of the four:
• 1.suspended solids,
• 2.dissolved solids,
• 3.colloidal solids, and
• 4.settleable solids.
• • Suspended solids are those solids which
remain floating in sewage,
• dissolved solids are those which remain
dissolved in sewage just as a salt in water.
• Colloidal solids are finely divided solids
remaining either in solution or in
suspension .
• Settleable solids are that solids which
settles out, if sewage is allowed to remain
undisturbed for a period of 2 hrs.
• The proportion of these different types of solids
is generally found to be as given below:
• • it has been estimated that about 1000 kg of
sewage contains about 0.454 kg of total solids,
out of which 0.225 kg in solution, 0.112 kg is in
suspension and 0.112 kg is settle able.
• • Also solids can be organic or inorganic. About
45 % of total solids are organic and the
remaining 55 % is inorganic
• • Inorganic matter consists of minerals and salts
like sand, gravel, dissolved salts, chlorides,
sulphates, etc.
• 2. pH •
• The pH value of sewage indicates the logarithm of
reciprocal of hydrogen ion concentration present in the
sewage.
• It is thus an indicator of the acidity or the alkalinity of
sewage.
• If the pH value is less than 7, the sewage is acidic and if
the pH vale is more than 7, the sewage is alkaline.
• • The fresh sewage is alkaline, with passed of time pH
tends to fall due to production of acid by bacterial action
in anaerobic or nitrification processes.
• However with treatment of sewage the pH tends to rise.
• • Determination of pH is important because efficiency of
certain treatment methods depends on it.
• • pH can be determined using pH meter ( Potentiometer)
• 3.Nitrogen Content (Nitrogen Compounds)

• The presence of nitrogen in sewage is an

indication of the presence of the organic
matter and may occur in one or more of
the following forms:
• • Free ammonia called ammonia nitrogen
• Albuminoid or Organic Nitrogen
• • Nitrites
• • Nitrates
• 4.Chlorides Contents
• • Chlorides are generally found in sewage and are
derived from kitchen wastes, human feces and urinary
discharges.
• The normal chloride content of sewage is 120 mg/lit,
whereas the permissible limit of chloride content in water
is 250 mg /lit.
• • However, large amount of chlorides may enter from
industries like ice cream plants, meat salting etc.. Hence,
when the chloride content of a given sewage is found to
be high, it indicates the presence of industrial wastes or
infiltration of seawater, thereby indicating strength of
sewage.
• • It can be determined by titrating the wastewater with
standard silver nitrate solution using potassium chromate
as indicator.
• 5.Fats, Oils and Greases
• Fats, oils and greases are derived in sewage from the
discharge of animals and vegetable matter, or from
the garages, kitchens of hotels and restaurants, etc..
• Such matter form scum on the top of the sedimentation
tanks, clogs the voids of the filter media and affects the
diffusion of oxygen. They thus interfere with the normal
treatment methods. Hence these detection and removal
is important.
• Oils and greases are soluble in ether. Hence for their
determination, a sample of sewage, sample is first of
all evaporated, leaving behind the oil and grease as a
residue, which is then weighed.
• Toxic • Copper, lead, silver, chromium,
arsenic, phenols, boron, cyanides, etc..
are some of the toxic compounds affecting
the microorganisms resulting in
malfunctioning from industrial waste.
• 6.Sulphides, Sulphates and Hydrogen Gas
• Sulphides and sulphates are formed due to the decomposition
of various sulphur containing substances in sewage.
• This decomposition also leads to evolution of hydrogen
sulphide gas, causing bad odours, besides causing corrosion of
concrete sewer pipes.
• In aerobic digestion of sewage, the aerobic and facultative
bacteria oxidizes the sulphur and its compounds present in the
sewage to initially form sulphides, which ultimately breakdown
to form sulphates ions, which is a stable and unobjectionable
end products.
• In an-aerobic digestion of sewage the anaerobic and
facultative bacteria reduce the sulphur and its compounds into
sulphides, with evolution of H2S gas along with methane and
carbon dioxide, thus causing very obnoxious odours.
• 7.Dissolved Oxygen
• Dissolved oxygen is the amount of oxygen in the dissolved state in the
wastewater.
• Through the wastewater generally does not have DO, its presence in
untreated wastewater indicates that the waste water is fresh.
• Similarly, its presence in treated wastewater effluent indicates that the
considerable oxidation has been accomplished during the treatment
stages. While discharging the treated wastewater into receiving
waters, it is essential to ensure that at least 4 mg/l of DO is present in
it.
• If DO is less, the aquatic animals like fish etc. are likely to be killed
near the vicinity of disposal.
• The presence of DO in wastewater is desirable because it prevents
the formation of obnoxious odour. DO determination also helps to find
the efficiency of biological treatment.
• 8.Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD)
is defined as the amount of oxygen required by the
microorganisms (mostly bacteria) to carry out decomposition
of biodegradable organic matter under aerobic conditions.
• The BOD test is widely used to determine the pollution
strength of domestic and industrial wastes in terms of the
oxygen that they will require if discharged into natural
watercourses.
• It is the one of the most important test in stream pollution
control activities
• This test is of prime importance in regulatory work and in
studies designed to evaluate the purification capacity of
receiving bodies of water.
• 9. Chemical Oxygen Demand •(COD)
• The BOD test takes minimum 5 days time and due to this it is
not very useful in control of treatment processes.
• An alternative test is COD test. It is widely used as a means
of measuring the amount of organic matter in the waste.
• It can be used to measure both biodegradable and non
biodegradable organic matter.
• COD test, takes 3 hours in comparison to 5 days for BOD test,
• In COD test, a strong chemical oxidizing agent like potassium
dichromate is used in acidic medium to oxidize the organic
matter present in the waste
• COD can be defined as amount of oxygen required to
chemically oxidize organic matter using a strong oxidizing
agent like potassium dichromate under acidic condition.
• iii.Biological Characteristics
• Biological Characteristics
• • The sewage contains many microorganisms like
bacteria, algae, fungi, protozoa, etc. bacteria being
the most predominant.
• Most of the bacteria found in the sewage are
harmless non-pathogenic bacteria.
• They are helpful in oxidation and decomposition of
sewage.
• A little no of bacteria, however, are disease
producing pathogens, which are the real danger to
the health of the public.
• • In case of sewage samples, the routine
bacteriological tests, as performed for water samples.