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Activated Sludge
Educational Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the operator should understand the activated sludge process, the requirements
for the treatment of wastewater in an activated sludge system, different reactor configurations, and monitoring
parameters.
III. Introduction
Activated sludge is a flock-like substance with aerobic bio-
mass as the active ingredient. The activated sludge process
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The discussion above only provides a generalization of dilution, the wastewater arriving at the treatment plant is gen-
the microorganisms in activated sludge. In reality, there are erally not toxic. The wastewater generally arrives at the treat-
hundreds of strains of bacteria and dozens of other microor- ment plant within an adequate temperature range for efficient
ganisms such as protozoa and cysts. treatment. The temperature is also fairly constant throughout
A schematic of the activated sludge system is shown be- the year because of the long period of time it spends in the
low. This system consists of 2 separate, but interdependent underground sewer system. However, if an industrial user has
units. The aeration basin provides the environment (air and a wastewater with an elevated temperature, it most be cooled
mixing) needed for the biological conversion of the pollutants before being discharged. This also protects the sewer system
to a gas and/or solid. Following the aeration basin, a sedi- and minimizes hydrogen sulfide production. As the microor-
mentation basin is used to separate and concentrate the solids ganisms necessary for activated sludge treatment are found in
(excess bacteria) from the bulk fluid stream. soil, they are naturally deposited into the wastewater stream
A recirculation line from the bottom of the sedimentation and are recirculated between the sedimentation basin and
basin returns concentrated microorganisms, returned acti- the aeration basin and, therefore, do not need to be routinely
vated sludge (RAS), to the aeration basin so that an optimal added. However, to rapidly start or restart a system, activated
concentration can always be maintained. Excess material sludge from a properly operating system is often seeded into
(sludge) is wasted from the system and disposed of. the process. The biological degradation of wastewater by ac-
tivated sludge is an oxidation/reduction process that requires
an electron acceptor. Because the process is aerobic, oxygen
serves as the electron acceptor. Oxygen is not present in
wastewater in adequate amounts and must be continuously
supplemented. The contact between the microorganisms and
the wastewater is achieved by mixing.
From the above discussion, it is clear that activated sludge
is an engineered process to optimize aerobic biodegradation
of the dissolved organic pollutants by providing oxygen, mix-
ing, and microorganisms (through recirculation from the bot-
tom of the secondary clarifier to the aeration basin). All other
IV. System Requirements required components are found naturally in the wastewater
For the aerobic biodegradation of organic pollutants, the fol- or controlled by pretreatment. Consequently, if the activated
lowing are required. sludge plant receives wastewater with characteristics that are
• Organic carbon not typically found in domestic sources it may fail.
• Macronutrients (nitrogen and phosphorous)
• Micronutrients (sulfur, potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron, V. Activated Sludge Process Components
sodium, chloride, copper, nickel, and hundreds of others) As shown below, the activated sludge process contains two
• Proper pH physical units, the aeration basin and secondary clarifier. The
• Lack of toxicity aeration system contains aeration equipment and the associ-
• Adequate temperature ated facility, if needed, to house blowers.
• Microorganisms
• Electron acceptor (oxygen for aerobic microorganisms)
• Contact between the wastewater and microorganisms
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A return sludge pump and associated piping is used to
return a portion of the solids and biomass from the final clari-
fier to the aeration basin. Without the return sludge pump,
the numbers of microorganisms needed to provide effective
degradation of the aeration influent solids loadings would
not be possible. The secondary clarifier also contains a wast-
ing system to remove excess sludge that is not needed in the
aeration basin. Sludge is recycled from the secondary clarifier
to the aeration basin in order to increase the population of
microorganisms in the aeration basin.
In addition to biomass quantity, the quality of the mixed
liquor is also critical. A well stabilized sludge should settle
rapidly in the secondary clarifier. In order for this to occur, the
sludge particles along with the microorganisims must form a
floc with enough mass for sedimentation to occur. Further-
more, certain filamentous bacteria cause sludge bulking and
Continuing with the components involved with the acti- poor settling. Solids that escape in the effluent of the second-
vated sludge process… ary clarifier will contribute substantially to the BOD of the
receiving stream.
The mixed liquor seen in the picture below is within the
aeration basin. The concentration of the microorganisms in VI. Design and Operational Parameters
the mixed liquor is typically represented as mixed liquor There are several operational and design parameters that
suspended solids (MLSS) or mixed liquor volatile suspended determine the characteristics of an activated sludge process.
solids (MLVSS). These parameters will first be described below and then their
relation explained and correlated to variations in the activated
sludge process.
where,
V = the volume of the aeration basin
Q = flow rate (volume/time)
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Qw = the flow rate (volume/time) of the sludge
wasted from the secondary clarifier
TSSe = the TSS (mg/L) of the water discharged
from the secondary clarifier
Qe = the flow rate (volume/time) of the water
discharged from the secondary clarifier
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Low sludge age, no nitrification, and low BOD removal, de- In mechanical systems, a turbine or a pump throws the
scribes the High Rate type of activated sludge system. There water into the air (shown in the image above). No additional
is a tremendous amount of excess sludge produced because equipment and facilities, beyond the mechanical devices mov-
the bacteria does not undergo endogenous respiration and, in ing the water, are required.
fact, remains in the log growth phase of the growth curve,
illustrated below. Continuing our discussion of Oxygen Delivery…
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basin. This arrangement is ideal for strong wastewater that
may contain a potentially toxic component. Theoretically, the
wastewater is instantly diluted when it enters the reactor.
X. Summary
This operator education course described the activated sludge
process as used for domestic wastewater treatment. An
overview of the microbiology, system requirements, reactor
configurations and operational parameters were discussed.
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Online Completion
Use this page to review the questions and choose your answers. Return to www.waterworldce.com and sign in. If you have not previously purchased
the program select it from the “Online Courses” listing and complete the online purchase. Once purchased the exam will be added to your Archives
page where a Take Exam link will be provided. Click on the “Take Exam” link, complete all the program questions and submit your answers. An
immediate grade report will be provided and upon receiving a passing grade (70%) your “Verification Form” will be provided immediately for viewing
and/or printing. Verification Forms can be viewed and/or printed anytime in the future by returning to the site, sign in and return to your Archives Page.
Questions
1. Which of the following statements 8. Which of the following
does not apply to the activated sludge activated sludge systems can be
system? Choose the best answer. operated with little to no wasting of
sludge? Choose the best answer.
A. It usually follows the
secondary clarifier. A. Extended aeration
B. It is an aerobic process. B. High rate
C. Microorganisms are used to convert C. Conventional
organics to biomass and gas. D. SBR
D. It involves natural material.
Address: E-mail:
Requirements for successful completion of the course and to obtain 1 professional development hour (PDH):
• Read the entire course.
• Take the test online at: www.WaterWorldCE.com
• A score of 70% on this test will earn you 1 PDH.
• Optional: Complete course evaluation below and return to:
PennWell, James Laughlin, 1421 S. Sheridan Rd., Tulsa, OK 74112 or jamesl@pennwell.com.
• Payment of $ will be required to take the test. Charges on your statement will show up as: PennWell
Course Evaluation
Please evaluate this course by responding to the following statements, using a scale of Excellent = 5 to Poor = 0.
1. Please rate the course’s effectiveness. 5 4 3 2 1 0
2. Was the overall administration of the course effective? 5 4 3 2 1 0
3. Do you feel that the references were adequate? Yes No
4. Would you participate in a similar program on a different topic? Yes No
5. If any of the test questions were unclear or ambiguous, please list them. ________________________________________________________
6. Was there any subject matter you found confusing? Please describe. ________________________________________________________
7. What additional power education topics would you like to see? ________________________________________________________
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