CE 170 Environmental Engineering (F17)

DO Sag Modeling Assignment

Ashleyvilles municipal wastewater plant (WWTP) is located on the Lazy River between Big
Lake and Cruz Creek (see diagram below). Currently, the plant provides secondary treatment and
the dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations in the Lazy River exceed the minimum DO required by
regulation (4.0 mg/L). Big changes are coming, though. By 2025, the state will complete a water
supply dam on Cruz Creek which will reduce the flow in the creek. Simultaneously, flows from
Leaky Dam (named after Congressman George Leaky) will be slightly smaller also due increased
irrigation withdrawals. Meanwhile in the river, the population of the endangered Golden Hornet
trout has been declining. Biologists suspect that low dissolved oxygen levels are the cause and
the regulatory limit in the future will be raised to 6.0 mg/L.

City officials see a confluence of events that will lead to serious compliance problems in the
future. The DO in the river is only a little above the legal standard now, and that standard will be
higher in the future. Meeting a higher standard will be challenging because in the future there
will be less water in the river and the citys discharge flow is expected to grow by 40% due to
population growth. Consequently, the city expects that when its WWTPs permit is renewed, the
BOD treatment requirements will be much more stringent than they are today.

Your firm has been hired to do a preliminary evaluation of the situation via computer modeling.
City officials want you to evaluate two alternatives. The first alternative is to increase the
efficiency of the treatment plant by upgrading its systems. All of the plant flow would be treated
to a lower BOD. The second alternative involves purchasing an existing wetland adjacent to the
WWTP which could provide additional treatment. The idea is that part of the plant flow would
be treated to the same level as today and part would be sent through the wetland which would
provide a polishing action (i.e. discharge from the wetland would be cleaner than the plant
flow).In this case, the city would discharge part of its flow at the existing WWTP location and the
other part at the downstream end of the wetland (see map).

Big Lake Future

To irrigation
reservoir
Cruz Creek
Dam

To irrigation
Lazy River

Ashleyville Wetlands
WWTP (future treatment)

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Tasks

Task 1 -- Construct the Model

Complete the Excel-based DOSAG (pronounced dee-oh sag) model. Start with the template
distributed by your instructor. Complete the model by writing four user-defined functions in
VBA. Look for comments in the spreadsheet (cells with red triangles). The BOD and DO results
you will produce when your template is working correctly are included in the template file. In
this project, external BOD values will always be reported as BOD5, even though BODu is used in
the Streeter-Phelps equation. Dont forget to include this adjustment in the appropriate functions.
A first-order decay coefficient for the BOD test (kBOD) has been measured in the lab. The BOD
test coefficient doesnt need to be adjusted because the test is always run at 20C.

The following empirical equation should be used for the reaeration constant.

3.9u 1 / 2
kr =
h3/ 2

where
kr = the reaeration coefficient at 20C (d-1)
u = average stream velocity (m/s)
h = average stream depth (m)

The reaeration coefficient should be adjusted for temperature as follows:

k r = k r , 20 (T 20 )

where = 1.024.

Task 2 -- Calibrate the Model

Calibration is the process of matching your model to known environmental data by adjusting
model parameters. Textbook values for constants needed to run a model are often not available
or are not accurate for a specific situation. For this reason, models must be calibrated against
field data to have credibility. In this project, the biodegradation coefficient (kd) of the waste in
the river is not known and must be determined using field data. (It is not the same as kBOD which
applies only to the bottles at 20.)

For calibration, use your DOSAG model to simulate the river under current conditions. Then,
compare your output with dissolved oxygen measurements taken in the creek and river. Try
different kd values in your model until the model output reproduces the current conditions in the
river. Since summer is the critical season (remember why?), this task will only be done on
summer data. The kd value you choose will be the one appropriate for the river temperature so no
temperature adjustment is needed.

How will you know when you have the kd that best fits the field data? A good way is to minimize
the differences between the model output and the data using a least-squared error procedure. As
in linear regression, the best fit line is the one that minimizes the sum of the squared errors (the
differences between the field values and the values predicted by the model). Use this method.
Add a column in which you calculate the differences between the field data and the calculated

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values, square each difference, and sum them. The kd that gives the smallest sum is the best
choice. Use Solver to find kd.

Task 3 -- Determine the Worst-Case Environmental Effect of the Project

Run the model for the flow conditions expected in the future after the new dam is constructed
assuming that the treatment plant will not change its BOD or DO. (Hint: You should see a
minimum DO in the river substantially below current conditions.)

Task 4 -- Evaluate the WWTP Upgrade Alternative

Use your model to determine the maximum BOD5 allowed in the effluent so that the minimum
DO in the river meets the standard. Use Solver for this. You dont want to waste taxpayer funds
by over-treating and you dont want to incur fines by under-treating. In practice, you might
include a safety factor, but in this preliminary analysis youve been told to omit that. (Hint: Your
required BOD5 should be less than half the current value.)

Task 5 Evaluate the Wetlands Alternative

In the wetlands alternative, the WWTP will divert part of its treated flow through the wetlands for
additional treatment. The part of the flow not diverted will have the same BOD and DO as the
current discharge. The diverted flow will exit the wetlands at a location downstream of the
WWTP. The location and the BOD5 and DO of the wetland discharge are shown in the data table
below. Run your model to determine the fraction of treated wastewater that needs to be diverted
through the wetlands. Remember, wastewater not diverted to the wetlands is discharged at the
original location with the original BOD and DO values. (Hint: You should find that more than
half of the flow needs to go through the wetland.)

Task 6 Write-up
Write a memo report addressed to your hypothetical boss (Ms. J. Al-Kazily) describing the
problem, how you modeled it, and what kind of computer model you used and its limitations. The
purpose of describing the model is to give your boss an idea about how accurate your solution
might be. Look at the assumptions behind the model (see Chemistry Supplement and textbook).
State clearly what would happen in the future with no changes in treatment plant operations, and
the results of your evaluation of alternatives. Dont make a recommendation about which
alternative to pursue. That decision would involve things that you are not considering such as
costs. Your document is strictly technical, presenting the results of your modeling.

The memo report should follow the following format:

- Heading format (single spaced):
MEMO
Date:
To: Ms. J. Al-Kazily, Public Works Director
From: your name
Subject: single-space if more than one line
- Double-spaced text except for the heading; 1.25 margins on left, 1 elsewhere
- 12-pt serif font (Times New Roman or similar, not Arial or Calibri)

The main narrative should be 3-4 pages long. Provide computer printouts of the calibration,
worst case, and two alternative runs. Include them as numbered and titled attachments placed
after the main text. Any other tables or figures you use should also be numbered, captioned, and
referenced in the narrative.

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Include the following 4 printouts (1 page each; set print area accordingly):
Calibrated model under current conditions. The calibration graph should show the field
data as symbols and the model output as a line without symbols.
Model under future project conditions but without any change in treatment at the plant
(i.e. the worst case). Of course, runs showing future conditions should not show current
field data.
Models for each of the two alternatives showing your recommended level of treatment
and/or diversion. Every alternative should meet the required DO standard.

Deliverables and Deadlines

Due at the last lab meeting or another date specified by your instructor.
A printed copy of your final report text and spreadsheet printouts.
A digital copy of your final report in Word format. Name it: DOSAG-YourLastName
(e.g., DOSAG-Smith).
A single Excel file containing all of your models as different tabs. Name it as specified
above. Be sure to save it as a macro-enabled file.

Conditions of work: This is an individual project. You may collaborate with classmates, but the
final product is to be your individual effort.

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Data Sheet

Physical data

Summer
Location Flow BOD5 DO
(km) (m3/s) (mg/L) (mg/L)
Leaky Dam (now) 0 7.5 2.0 8.0
Leaky Dam (future) 0 6.0 2.0 8.0
WWTP (now) 5 3.0 30 4.0
WWTP (future) 5 +40%* ?? 4.0
Wetlands discharge (future) 7.5 ?? 4.0 6.0
Cruz Creek (now) 20 7.0 4.0 8.0
Cruz Creek (future) 20 3.5 4.0 8.0
* Above current flows.

BOD test coefficient: kBOD= 0.25 /d (use this to convert between BOD5 and BODu)

Existing Field Conditions for Calibration

Summer (17C)
Location (km) Velocity (m/s) Depth (m) DO (mg/L)
0 0.08 2.0 8.0
5 (upstream of mixing zone) 8.0
5 (downstream of mixing zone) 0.08 2.0 7.0
7.5 0.08 2.0 6.5
10 0.08 2.0 6.0
12.5 0.08 2.0 5.5
15 0.08 2.0 5.5
20 (upstream of mixing zone) 5.0
20 (downstream of mixing zone) 0.06 3.5 6.0
25 0.06 3.5 5.5
30 0.06 3.5 5.0
35 0.06 3.5 4.5
40 0.06 3.5 4.5
45 0.06 3.5 4.5
50 0.06 3.5 4.5
60 0.06 3.5 5.0
70 0.06 3.5 5.5
75 0.06 3.5 6.0

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