Phosphorous Removal in Intermittent Cycle Extended

Aeration System Wastewater Treatment Plant

- Effect of Temperature
LI Hongjing, CHEN Yinguang, GU Guowei

LIU Yandong

State Key Lab of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of

Wafangdian Longshan Wastewater Treatment Plant, Wafangdian,

Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University,

Dalian, China

Shanghai, China
Abstract- Wafangdian wastewater treatment plant (WTP)

quality of very few WTP meets the national wastewater

employed intermittent cycle extended aeration system (ICEAS),

discharge standard completely in different seasons, especially

which was the first application in the northeast of China. WTP

phosphorous concentration in effluent. In 2004, Wafangdian

achieved good performance in the past almost three-year

wastewater treatment plant was operated with the intermittent

operation with effluent quality of COD 26~52mg/L (40mg/L in

cycle extended aeration system (ICEAS), which was applied

NH4+-N

the first time in the northeast of China. It achieved good

0.68~7.79mg/L (3.87mg/L in average), TN 11.61~19.44mg/L

performance under different seasonal conditions in the past

(15.58mg/L in average), SS 2~19mg/L (11mg/L in average) and

almost three years operation. The characteristics of ICEAS

TP 0.50~1.02mg/L (0.88mg/L in average). The average removal

are without primary setting tank and final setting tank, and

average), BOD 6~17mg/L (11mg/L in average),

efficiency was COD 82%, BOD 87%, NH4 -N 78%, TN 46%, SS

different periods, including filling, mixing, aeration, settling,

93% and TP 76%, respectively. The phosphorous removal

decanting and sludge wasting are in one aeration tank.

efficiency in Wafangdian WTP was higher in winter, while lower

Pre-treatment constructions of ICEAS wastewater treatment

in summer. The possible reasons for phosphorous removal were

plant are similar to those of other SBR WTP, including coarse

discussed, and the temperature was an important factor for the

screens, pumping station, fine screens and grit chamber.

competition between phosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs)

Sludge treatment constructions are thickening tank and

and glycogen-accumulating organisms (GAOs) in full-scale

centrifuge dewatering house. Chlorine is adopted for

Wafangdian WTP.

disinfection of effluent. Compared with both conventional

Keywords- Intermittent cycle extended aeration system; Phosphorous

activated sludge process and SBR, the ICEAS has been

removal efficiency; Temperature; PAOs; GAOs

proved to have lots of advantages from the operational

1. INTRODUCTION

practice, such as less footprint, good operational performance,

The discharge of phosphorous to receiving waterways

simple process, stable operation under conditions of high

increases eutrophication rates in lakes, ponds and rivers.

variation of wastewater quality with peak load, and longer

Phosphorus removal from wastewater is required in order to

sludge age.

control worldwide water pollution. Enhanced biological

In the literatures, most of the studies on ICEAS

phosphorus removal (EBPR) is characterized with obvious

wastewater treatment were focused on its design and

phosphorous anaerobic release and aerobic uptake. The

operation [1-3], but the influence of temperature on ICEAS

phosphorous aerobic uptake is much greater than the

performance

anaerobic release, which results in a net phosphorus removal

researchers observed phosphorous removal efficiency of

when sludge is discharged.

wastewater treatment was influenced by temperature [4-10],

had

seldom

been

investigated.

Several

In recent years, many full-scale EBPR wastewater

most of them used anaerobic-aerobic (A/O) sequencing batch

treatment plants (WTP) have been built in China, but effluent

reactors (SBR), and few of SBR was operated under ICEAS

978-1-4244-1748-3/08/$25.00 2008 IEEE

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conditions.

Brdjanovic

et

al.

showed

that

complete

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

removal efficiency from July 2004 to March 2007 were

and then to 5oC had no significant influence on the efficiency

presented in Figure 1. COD removal efficiency range was

of EBPR [8]. The studies of several authors showed that there

from 33% in September 2004 to 90% in April 2006, and its

were improved phosphorus removal efficiencies at lower

removal efficiency improved with the increase of time. Total

temperature (5~15oC) [9], which might be due to the fact that

variational tendency of average BOD removal efficiency was

temperature was an important factor affecting the competition

enhanced from 53% in September 2004 to 94% in January

between phosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs) and

2006, and the performance of ICEAS kept stable since then.

organisms

(GAOs)

and

the

performance of EBPR [4].

Also, some researchers thought that the PAOs were
lower-range mesophiles or possibly psychrophiles. As the
temperature rised, the portion of energy required for
maintenance increased substantially which reduced the energy
availability for cell reproduction; thus, the PAOs were washed
out from the system [5].

Average inlet and outlet COD (mg/L)

glycogen-accumulating

375
350
325
300
275
250
225
200
175
150
125
100
75
50
25
0

Since there were very few studies concerning the effect

of temperature on the phosphorous removal efficiency in
investigate

seasonal

temperature

variations

affecting

biological phosphorous removal in Wafangdian wastewater

treatment plant. Also, the influences of temperature on
chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand
(BOD), suspended solids (SS), total nitrogen (TN), ammonia
nitrogen (NH4+-N) and total phosphorous (TP) removal were
studied.
2. MATERIALS AND METHODS
Wafangdian wastewater treatment plant was designed to
handle an average wastewater flow of 0.694m3/s, and mixed

J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FM-Month

200
Average inlet and outlet BOD (mg/L)

full-scale ICEAS WTP, the purpose of this paper was to

Inlet
Outlet
Removal efficiency

175
150
125
100
75
50
25
0

Inlet
Outlet
Removal efficiency

J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FM

Month

100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25

Average COD removal efficiency (%)

Average COD and BOD variations of inlet and outlet and

al. concluded that a drop in temperature from 20oC to 10oC

100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40

Average BOD removal efficiency (%)

phosphorous removal could be obtained at 5 C [7]. Helmer et

Figure 1. Average COD and BOD of inlet and outlet and their
removal efficiencies

liquor suspended solids (MLSS) concentration was around

The inlet and outlet variations of NH4+-N and TN and

4000mg/L. 30min before the end of decanting stage, the

removal efficiency were given in Figure 2. Average NH4+-N

sludge was wasted to keep the sludge retention time (SRT) at

removal efficiency had no special law. The highest removal

approximately 28d. The design of the WTP should meet the

efficiency was 95% in October 2005, while the lowest was

first B degree of Discharge Standard of Pollutants for

25% in October 2004, which was the beginning of the

Municipal

China

operation. Average TN removal efficiency was not high, from

(GB18918-2002). Influent and effluent samples for COD,

34% in July 2004 to 65% in February 2005, and the lowest

BOD, SS, TN, NH4+-N and TP analysis were collected

was 11% in October 2004. Average inlet, outlet TP and SS and

directly from the tank, the system performance was tested

removal efficiency were shown in Figure 3. SS removal

during the operation. DO and temperature were continuously

efficiency was very high, most of them were more than 90%,

monitored. All the analyses were performed according to the

and the lowest was 75% in September 2004. In the northeast

standard methods [10].

of China, winter is from December to March, and the

Wastewater

Treatment

Plant

in

variation of wastewater temperature is from 12oC to 15oC.

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in EBPR Wafangdian wastewater treatment plant.

Different researchers had different explanations for
higher EBPR efficiency at lower temperature. Many authors
explained the higher EBPR efficiency at lower temperature by
stating that the EBPR bacteria were psychrophilic [11]. Above

85

80

75

70

65

60

55

nitrification at low temperature made the anoxic zone into an

additional

anaerobic

zone,

and

facultative

anaerobic

microorganisms accumulated in the microbial population.

Average inlet and outlet SS (mg/L)

phosphorus removing bacteria. They concluded that reduced

100
95

250

90
85

200

80
75

150
Inlet
Outlet
Removal efficiency

100

70
65
60

50

55

They showed the best abilities to store polyphosphate under

these conditions, whereas aerobic bacteria lost

50

J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FM

Month

300

for substrates with the psychrophiles resulting in less

also attributed their results to an accumulation of cold tolerant

90

10oC, the non-EBPR mesophilic bacteria would then compete

phosphate removal at higher temperatures. Helmer et al. [8]

95

their

Average TP removal efficiency (%)

removal efficiency was higher in winter and lower in summer

100
Inlet
Outlet
Removal efficiency

J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FM

Month

Average SS removal efficiency (%)

temperature range is 23oC~26oC. Figure 3 showed that TP

10
Average inlet and outlet TP (mg/L)

Summer is from July to September, the wastewater

50

polyphosphate storing capacities. However, Choi et al. [6]

Figure 3. Average TP and SS of inlet and outlet and their

explained that possible reason to induce the biological

removal efficiencies

recovery of phosphorous removal at low temperature was the

40
38
36
34
32
30
28
26
24
22
20
18
16
14
12
10
8

It was well known that PAOs were believed to dominate

in EBPR systems. However, failure of phosphorus removal

100
90
80
70
60
50
Inlet
40
Outlet
Removal efficiency
30
20
10
J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FM
Month

Average NH4+-N removal efficiency (%)

30
28
26
24
22
20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0

50
40
Inlet
Outlet
Removal efficiency 30
20
10

type of microorganism, referred to as GAOs, could take up

organic substrate anaerobically without phosphorus release
and was believed to relate to the deterioration of EBPR
systems

[13].

Although

definite

conditions

for

the

proliferation of GAOs had not been fully determined and the

mechanism of competition between PAOs and GAOs was not
efficiency was obtained at low temperature in full-scale EBPR

70
60

had been reported due to unknown reasons [12]. A particular

fully understood, the fact that higher phosphorus removal

Average TN removal efficiency (%)

Average inlet and outlet TN (mg/L)

Average inlet and outlet NH4+-N (mg/L)

domination of denitrifying dephosphatation bacteria.

Wafangdian WTP strengthened the conclusion of Whang et al.

[4], that is, PAOs were able to out-compete GAOs at low
temperature and dominated in laboratory-scale EBPR
sequencing batch reactors, which led to higher phosphorous
removal at low temperature; while for kinetic batch studies,
the anaerobic specific acetate uptake rate of GAO-dominated
sludge was higher than the rate of PAO-dominated sludge at

J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FMAMJ J ASOND J FM

Month

Figure 2. Average NH4-N and TN of inlet and outlet and

their removal efficiencies

30oC, leading to the eventual failure of EBPR processes at

high temperatures.
The data in Figure 3 showed that a lower temperature
resulted in a higher total phosphorus removal efficiency, but
2972

the inlet phosphorus concentration was also higher under

[3]

C. F. Ouyang and C. T. Juan. A study of a modified process for the

lower temperature conditions. It seems that a greater TP

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phosphorus concentration. In this study, the relationship

among the TP removal efficiency, inlet TP concentration and

[4]

and glycogen accumulating organisms in biological phosphorus

temperature in different seasons could be expressed by double

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factor analysis without repetition.

Fobserved (temperature) = 45.25 Fcrit = 6.94;

191-194, 2002.

P-value

(temperature) = 0.0018
Fobserved (inlet TP) = 6.25 Fcrit = 6.94;

L. M. Whang and J. K. Park. Competition between polyphosphate -

[5]

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The results of wikipedia analysis were shown above,

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on biological phosphorus removal from wastewater. Water Res., vol.

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4. CONCLUSIONS
Wafangdian WTP adopting ICEAS was investigated.

[8]

C. Helmer and S. Kunst. Low temperature effects on phosphorus

Operation effect was better in the past almost three years.

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NH4+-N 78%, TN 46%, SS 93% and TP 76%, respectively.

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Under normal operation conditions, average effluent quality

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[10]

APHA. Standard methods for the examination of water and waste

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phosphorous removal in operation were discussed in the

Association, 1995.

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was analyzed. The temperature was observed to be an

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