1293

Load tests on full-scale bored pile groups

Guoliang Dai, Rodrigo Salgado, Weiming Gong, and Yanbei Zhang

Abstract: The interactions between closely spaced piles in a pile group are complex. Very limited experimental data are
available on the loading of full-scale bored pile groups. This paper reports the results of axial static load tests of both full-
scale instrumented pile groups and single piles. The load tests aimed to ascertain the influence of number, length, and
spacing of the piles on pile group load response. Experiments varied in the number of piles in the group, pile spacing, type
of pile groups, and pile length. All piles had a diameter of 400 mm. Two-, four-, and nine-pile groups with pile lengths of
20 and 24 m were tested. As the isolated piles and some piles in the pile groups were instrumented, the load transfer and
load–settlement curves of both piles in isolation and individual instrumented piles in the groups were obtained. The
interaction coefficient for each pile in the group was back-calculated from the measured data. The interaction coefficients
are shown to be dependent on pile proximity, as usually assumed in elastic analyses, but also on settlement and on the size
of the group.
Key words: pile groups, load transfer, settlement ratio, interaction coefficient.
Résumé : Les interactions entre des pieux placés à proximité les uns des autres dans un groupe de pieux sont complexes.
Très peu de données expérimentales sont disponibles sur les chargements de groupes de pieux foncés, à l’échelle réelle.
Cet article présente les résultats d’essais de chargement statique axial sur des groupes de pieux et des pieux individuels
instrumentés à l’échelle réelle. Les essais de chargement visaient à confirmer l’influence du nombre, de la longueur et de
l’espacement des pieux sur le comportement de groupes de pieux. Les essais ont permis de varier le nombre de pieux dans
un groupe, l’espacement entre les pieux, le type de groupe de pieux et la longueur des pieux. Tous les pieux avaient un
diamètre de 400 mm. Des groupes de deux pieux, de quatre pieux et de neuf pieux, avec une longueur de 20 m et de 24 m
respectivement, ont été testés. Puisque les pieux individuels et quelques pieux à l’intérieur des groupes ont été
instrumentés, les courbes de transfert de charge et de tassement total ont été obtenues autant pour les pieux isolés que pour
les pieux individuels faisant partie d’un groupe. Le coefficient d’interaction pour chaque pieu dans le groupe a été rétro-
calculé à partir des données mesurées. On a démontré que les coefficients d’interaction dépendent de la proximité des
pieux, tel que normalement supposé dans les analyses élastiques, mais aussi du tassement et de la taille du groupe.
Mots-clés : groupe de pieux, transfert de charge, ratio de tassement, coefficient d’interaction.
[Traduit par la Rédaction]

Introduction (length to pile diameter) greater than 100) and an associated

need for more refined designs. In pursuing more refined de-
Infrastructure construction in China has proceeded at a fast signs, one of the areas where real data from instrumented
pace. Many large-span bridges have been built across the structures is most lacking is pile groups.
Yangtze River, across the Yellow River, and even across the Settlement analyses of pile groups (e.g., Poulos 1968;
ocean. Examples include the Jiangyin Yangtze River Bridge, Butterfield and Banerjee 1971; Randolph and Wroth 1979;
Runyang Yangtze River Bridge, Sutong Yangtze River Poulos and Randolph 1983; Poulos 1989; Chow and Teh 1991;
Bridge, Hangzhou Bay Sea Bridge, and Donghai Sea Bridge. Lee 1993a, 1993b; Mandolini and Viggiani 1997; Mylonakis
As an illustration of this type of foundation in engineering and Gazetas 1998; Randolph 2003; Leung et al. 2010) are
practice, the two main-span foundations of the Sutong Yangtze based on a variety of approaches, which include boundary-
River Bridge consist of 131 117 m long piles with diameters in element methods, the hybrid load transfer approach, and the
the 2.8 –2.5 m range with pile caps having plan dimensions of finite element method. Despite some theoretical advances in
50 m by 48 m and thickness varying between 5 and 13 m. the analyses and prediction of pile group behavior in the last
These bridges all have large spans and consequently require few decades, analyses are still based largely on simplifications
piles with large load capacity in pile-based foundation solu- of the problem and of the constitutive behavior of the soil.
tions. This in turn leads to the use of a large number of piles Consequently, static load tests on groups remain the most
with large diameters and long lengths (sometimes referred to reliable means of assessing pile group response under design
as “super long” piles, which might be generally thought of as loads. Some model and field pile group vertical load tests have
piles with lengths greater than 100 m or slenderness ratio been performed (Whitaker 1957; Hanna 1963; Barden and
Received 8 November 2011. Accepted 31 July 2012. Published at www.nrcresearchpress.com/cgj on 8 November 2012.
G. Dai and W. Gong. School of Civil Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2 Sipailou, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210096, China.
R. Salgado and Y. Zhang. School of Civil Engineering, Purdue University, 550 Stadium Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA.
Corresponding author: Guoliang Dai (e-mail: daigl@seu.edu.cn).

Can. Geotech. J. 49: 1293–1308 (2012) doi:10.1139/t2012-087 Published by NRC Research Press
1294
Monckton 1970; Cooke et al. 1980; Briaud et al. 1989; Ismael
2001; Bai et al. 2006; Yetginer et al. 2006); however, due to
the difficulties and cost of full-scale load tests, most pile group
tests were scaled down regardless of whether they were per-
formed in the field or laboratory. There are few full-scale, in
situ bored pile group load tests reported in the literature (Bai
et al. 2006).
The absence of rigorous methods of analysis and the scar-
city of full-scale high-quality data from instrumented load
tests on single piles and pile groups means that the use of
conventional methods to design large-scale, heavily loaded
pile foundations with very long pile lengths requires extra
caution. Some research has been done on super-long single
piles (Wei 1996; Fei 2000; Yu 2002; Fang 2003; Xie et al.
2003). Results from this research show three key characteris-
tics of super-long, large-diameter piles that differ from con-
ventional piles: (i) pile weight is a larger percentage of pile
bearing capacity; (ii) accounting for pile compression becomes
more important in settlement estimation; (iii) mobilization of
base resistance requires excessive pile head settlements due to
greater axial compressibility of the pile, which implies that
ultimate loads will be associated with much greater ratios of
shaft to base resistance. Although most published work on
long piles has focused on single piles, long piles are most often
used in groups. The typical approach in a project involving
long piles is to load-test single piles for verification and to
estimate pile group settlement by approximate methods.
The present paper aims to start filling this knowledge gap by
analyzing full-scale, in situ bored pile group tests. The aim of
the tests and analysis is to investigate the following crucial
issues in particular: (i) rates of the pile head and pile base load
mobilization with settlement; (ii) variation of the shaft resis-
tance, which is responsible for the difference between these
two rates, between single piles and piles in a group in various
arrangements; (iii) proportion of load applied on a pile cap
shared between the piles in the group; (iv) pile group effi-
ciency variation with settlement.
Experimental program
Pile configurations
As summarized in Table 1, the field load tests were per-
formed on: (i) an isolated single pile with length L ⫽ 20 m;
(ii) an isolated single pile with L ⫽ 24 m; (iii) a two-pile group
with spacing sp ⫽ 2.5B (where B is the pile diameter of
400 mm) and L ⫽ 20 m; (iv) a two-pile group with sp ⫽ 3.0B
and L ⫽ 24 m; (v) a four-pile group with sp ⫽ 2.5B and L ⫽
20 m; (vi) a four-pile group with sp ⫽ 3.0B and L ⫽ 24 m;
(vii) a nine-pile group with sp ⫽ 2.5B and L ⫽ 20 m; (viii) a
nine-pile group with sp ⫽ 3.0B and L ⫽ 24 m. All piles in the
experiments had a diameter, B, of 400 mm. The concrete


strength (f cd ) was 25 MPa for both the piles and the caps. All
caps were reinforced with 12 mm rebars at a two-way spacing
of 150 mm. The concrete reinforcement cover was 70 mm in
the caps and 35 mm in the piles.
In this paper, tests on isolated single piles are denoted DZ. Pile
group tests are denoted QZ. The suffix L is used to indicate that
the pile length, L, is 24 m (and so is longer than 20 m, the length
for the other set of piles). For example, QZ2 represents the two-pile
group with shorter pile length and QZ2L indicates the two-pile group
with longer piles. Finally, a dash after the pile group reference
Can. Geotech. J. Vol. 49, 2012
followed by a number indicates a specific pile within that group. For
instance, QZ2–1 is a reference to pile No. 1 in the QZ2 group. The
layout of the testing area is shown in Fig. 1.
Site characterization
The test site was located in Jiangning, Nanjing, China, and
the ground at the site was level. The subsoil of the test site is
the QinHuai River floodplain. One auger boring (BH) was
drilled at the test site to a depth of 29.50 m. This boring
showed a uniform, thick soft clay layer starting at 17 m and
extending all the way to the bottom of that boring (and, from
knowledge of the site, beyond). This auger boring depth was
11B (B ⫽ 400 mm, the pile diameter) deeper than the test pile
base for piles with 24 m length. Static cone penetration tests
(CPTs) were performed in the vicinity of BH to give a con-
tinuous record of the soil resistance with depth. Figure 2 shows
all four CPT logs available for the site, the locations of which
are identified in Fig. 1. As CPTu is not commonly used in
China, pore-water pressure measurement was not possible
with the cone used. Table 2 summarizes the soil properties of
each soil layer crossed by the test piles. The subsoil profile
includes multiple layers of silt and clay. The thickness of each
layer was identified based on CPT data. Soil samples were
obtained by using split-spoon samplers. The ground water
level was found at a depth of 2.60 m.
Pile installation and instrumentation
The piles were installed using the slurry method. Pile in-
stallation started on 28 June 2008 and ended on 3 August
2008. The piles were drilled to depths of 20 or 24 m and
protruded 0.1 m above ground level. A 0.4, 0.8 or 1.2 m thick
reinforced concrete cap was subsequently poured on the pile
groups and single piles. The eight caps were completed all at
once between 5–13 August 2008. Figure 1 shows a layout plan
of the test piles and pile groups. The pile caps rested on the
ground and may be considered rigid for practical purposes.
The pile spacing was 2.5B in groups QZ2, QZ4, and QZ9 and
3.0B in groups QZ2L, QZ4L, and QZ9L. Details of the pile
spacing in the groups and dimensions of the pile caps is
summarized in Table 1.
Axial forces along the depth were monitored by two strain
gauges installed evenly at each cross section for all test piles.
There were six instrumented sections in each instrumented pile
(as shown in Fig. 2). A vibrating-wire load cell measured the pile
top load of each pile in the pile groups (for four- and nine-pile
groups) during the loading process. Fourteen vibrating wire cells
were used in total, one each on the top of the following piles: QZ4-1,
QZ4-4, QZ4L-1, QZ4L-4, QZ9-1, QZ9-4, QZ9-5, QZ9-6, QZ9-9,
QZ9L-1, QZ9L-4, QZ9L-5, QZ9L-6, and QZ9L-9.
Test procedure
The load tests were performed using the kentledge load
method. The dead load applied by square precast concrete
piles was placed evenly on the reaction platform, before the
test. The length of the reaction beams was 12 m and the
distances between the supporting points and the center of
the pile caps were all larger than 5 m. It is possible that, for the
nine-pile group, this distance might not be sufficient to avoid
creating an impact on values of measured settlement. How-
ever, this impact would be negligible except for small loads
and settlements. The dead load was 1.2 times the estimated
ultimate load of the test pile group. Load was applied by
Published by NRC Research Press
Dai et al. 1295

Table 1. Summary of field tests.

No. of Pile Pile Pile cap sizes (length ⫻ width ⫻ Slenderness

No. piles length (m) spacing height; all in metres) ratio, L/B
DZ1 1 20 N/A 0.4 ⫻ 0.4 ⫻ 0.4 50
DZ1L 1 24 N/A 0.4 ⫻ 0.4 ⫻ 0.4 60
QZ2 2 20 2.5B 1.8 ⫻ 0.8 ⫻ 0.8 50
QZ2L 2 24 3.0B 2.0 ⫻ 0.8 ⫻ 0.8 60
QZ4 4 20 2.5B 1.8 ⫻ 1.8 ⫻ 0.8 50
QZ4L 4 24 3.0B 2.0 ⫻ 2.0 ⫻ 0.8 60
QZ9 9 20 2.5B 2.8 ⫻ 2.8 ⫻ 1.2 50
QZ9L 9 24 3.0B 3.2 ⫻ 3.2 ⫻ 1.2 60

Fig. 1. Layout plan of test piles and pile groups (all dimensions in millimetres).

hydraulic jacks. A pump was used to push the oil into the jacks
through high-pressure oil hoses.
Settlements were measured at four locations on the upper
surface of the cap using four displacement transducers. The
axial loads transferred along the instrumented piles were mea-
sured by strain gauges, which were mounted on the steel bars.
The real strain of the steel bar was obtained from
[1] εs ⫽ Kε ⫹ b
where K and b are strain gage calibration factors and ␧ is the
reading from the sensor.
The real strain in the concrete was assumed to be the same
as that of the steel bar. The axial force applied on the pile is
[2] P ⫽ σsAs ⫹ σcAc ⫽ εsEsAs ⫹ εcEcAc
where ␴ is stress, ␧ is strain, E is the elastic modulus, A is the
cross-sectional area, and the subscripts s and c are used to
represent the steel bar and concrete, respectively. The elastic
modulus of the concrete was measured as 29.2 GPa, which
was obtained by performing axial compression tests on six
concrete samples with sizes 100 mm ⫻ 100 mm ⫻ 300 mm,
28 days after formation.

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1296 Can. Geotech. J. Vol. 49, 2012

Fig. 2. CPT site logs, in terms of cone resistance qc versus depth, and layout of strain gauges in the test piles (all dimensions in metres).

Table 2. Soil properties.

Direct shear test,

curve-fit strength One-dimensional
envelope consolidation test
Void Plasticity Liquidity Internal
Thickness Unit weight, ratio, index, index, Cohesion friction ␣1–2 Es
Soil (m) ␥ (kN/m3) e0 Ip IL (kPa) angle, ␸ (MPa–1) (MPa)
Fill 2.6 19.2 0.76 16.0 0.42 38 17.4 0.30 6.07
Clay 2.0 19.6 0.71 17.2 0.28 50 18.5 0.23 7.65
Silt 5.6 18.5 0.85 5.8 0.60 11 22.5 0.25 7.56
Silt intermixed with silty sand 7.3 18.8 0.79 5.0 0.64 13 23.7 0.20 8.88
Soft clay 11.6 17.4 1.24 21.7 0.96 15 8.3 0.67 3.40
Note: ␣1–2, coefficient of compressibility; Es, Young’s modulus of soil.

The load tests were slowly maintained load tests, with no
unload–reload loops. The main procedure is as follows:
1. For a single pile, the loading increment was one-tenth of
the estimated ultimate load capacity. For pile groups, the
load increment was one-fifteenth of the estimated ultimate
load.
2. The displacements were measured 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, and
60 min after each load increment and then once every
30 min thereafter.
3. The difference between the displacements at 30 min and
1 h after application of each load increment was calculated.
If this difference was less than 0.1 mm, then the next load
increment was applied.
4. Loading was discontinued if any of the following condi-
tions were satisfied:
a. The total displacement was ⱖ 40 mm (0.1B) and the
displacement at the pile tops was ⱖ 5 times the dis-
placement there at the beginning of the load increment.
b. The total displacement was ⱖ 40 mm and the displace-
ment did not stabilize after 24 h of loading.
Analysis of load test results
Single pile test results
The load–settlement curves for the two single piles (Fig. 3)
show that these two curves are almost identical for bearing
capacity Q ⱕ 900 kN, corresponding roughly to 0.6Qult, with
ultimate bearing capacity, Qult, defined based on the tradi-
tional 10% relative settlement criterion (Salgado 2008). For
Q ⬎ 900 kN, the settlement at the pile top is greater for DZ1
than for DZ1L at the same load. The ultimate bearing capacity

Published by NRC Research Press

Dai et al. 1297

Fig. 3. Load (Q) versus settlement (w) for single piles. Fig. 4. Axial force distribution along depth for pile DZ1.

Q (kN) Load (kN)

            
0 0
240kN
360kN
5 480kN
10
600kN

Depth (m)
10 720kN
20 840kN
w (mm)

DZ1: B=0.4m,L=20m 15 960kN

30 1080kN
DZ1L: B=0.4m,L=24m 1200kN
20
40 1320kN
25 1440kN

50

Fig. 5. Axial force distribution along depth for pile DZ1L.

Load (kN)
Qult is 1430 kN for DZ1 and 1540 kN for DZ1L according to       
the 10% criterion. 0
Figures 4 and 5 show the axial load transfer curves (axial 280kN
420kN
force versus depth along the pile) for DZ1 and DZ1L through- 5
560kN
out the loading process. There is significant transfer of load 700kN
Depth (m)

(shaft resistance) from the pile to the soil between 2.6 and
17.5 m for both DZ1 and DZ1L, which makes the resistance at
the pile base for both DZ1 and DZ1L comparatively small. As
the last level of strain gauges were located 1.0 m above the pile
base, extrapolation would be required to attempt to estimate
the pile base load. Because extrapolation is inherently imper-
fect, we will report the load at the last level of strain gauges as
the pile base load, but it should be understood that this over-
estimates the pile base load.
At the end of the test, the pile head load for DZ1 is 1440 kN
while the pile base load is 31 kN, which corresponds to only
2.2% of the pile head load. For DZ1L, the corresponding
numbers are 1540 kN (pile head load), 62 kN (pile base load),
and 4% (ratio of pile base to pile head load). These results
suggest minimal and potentially zero base mobilization, which
means that essentially all of the loads applied at the pile head
are carried by shaft resistance. So both pile DZ1 (L/B ⫽ 50)
and pile DZ1L (L/B ⫽ 60) obtain all their resistance from shaft
resistance at values of relative settlement conventionally as-
sociated with the ultimate load. Complete shaft resistance
mobilization in friction piles crossing soft soil layers may
require large pile head settlement because of large axial pile
compressibility.
Pile group results
Figure 6 shows the load–settlement curves of the single
piles and pile groups with two, four, and nine piles. The
settlements of the individual pile in the group were not mea-
sured separately; however, the pile cap can be considered rigid
so that all piles can be assumed to have the same settlement.
Figure 7a shows the load–settlement curves for the single
pile and the average load–settlement curves for the pile groups
with L ⫽ 20 m. The average load per pile in a group is less
than the load on a single pile at the same settlement except for
pile group QZ2. This exception is likely caused by variability
in the soil properties around that group or some variability in
construction. The equivalent figure for L ⫽ 24 m is Fig. 7b,
10
840kN
980kN
15
1120kN
1260kN
20
1400kN
1540kN
25
which shows a much clearer separation between the responses
of the single pile and the average response of each pile group.
Settlement ratio
Pile group design checks, either ultimate limit state or
serviceability limit state checks, are in truth settlement checks.
A limit or plunging resistance for a pile is of no interest in a
well-designed foundation, which means a foundation that is
very unlikely to plunge, but is still cost-effective. Depending
on how much of the total pile resistance comes from the shaft
and from the base, this well-designed pile foundation will rely
exclusively on shaft resistance or on shaft resistance plus some
fraction of the base resistance under working conditions. Be-
cause of the focus on settlement, it is important to develop and
assess methods of estimation of settlement and, in particular,
methods to relate the settlement experienced by a pile in a
group (or by the pile group as a whole) to that experienced by
an identical pile under the same conditions, but isolated. This
is best done by having pile head stiffness (the ratio of load to
settlement) expressed as a function of settlement.
Another quantity used to express the same notion is the
group settlement ratio, Rs, defined as the ratio of the settlement
of a pile group to that of single pile at the same average load
per pile (Poulos and Davis 1980). The same data can be
represented in terms of Rs at various settlement levels. Fig-
ures 8a and 8b show this relationship. In general, values of Rs
of both four- and nine-pile groups tend to increase with set-

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1298 Can. Geotech. J. Vol. 49, 2012

Fig. 6. Load versus settlement for single piles and pile groups. sp, spacing of pile group.

Q (kN)
      


 '=% P/ P

'=/% P/ P

 4=% P/ PVS% 

w (mm)
4=/% P/ PVS% 
4=% P/ PVS% 

4=/% P/ PVS% 
4=% P/ PVS% 
 4=/% P/ PVS% 





Fig. 7. Load–settlement curves for the single pile and average Fig. 8. Settlement ratio, Rs, versus pile group settlement for all
load–settlement curves for the pile groups: (a) L ⫽ 20 m; (b) L ⫽ pile groups: (a) with L ⫽ 20 m; (b) with L ⫽ 24 m.
24 m.
(a) 7
(a) Q (kN)
6
QZ2
0 500 1000 1500 2000 QZ4

Settlement ratio, Rs
5
0 QZ9
4
10
3
20
2
30 DZ1
w (mm)

1
QZ2
40 0
QZ4
      
50 QZ9 Pile group settlement (mm)

60
(b) 7
70 QZ2L
6
QZ4L
(b) Q (kN)
Settlement ratio, Rs

5
QZ9L
0 500 1000 1500 2000
4
0
3
10
2
20
1
DZ1L
30
w (mm)

QZ2L 0
40        
QZ4L
Pile group settlement (mm)
50 QZ9L

60

70
tlement. The single pile settlement is generally smaller than
the corresponding pile group settlement at the same average
load per pile when the load is relatively large. The Rs values
for the two-pile groups are however close to unity. The initial
values of Rs (at small loads) are also close to unity, indicating
little interaction between the piles.
Shaft resistances and base resistances of individual piles
The average unit shaft resistance, qs, between strain
gauge levels can be calculated from the load transfer
curves. Figure 9 shows the distributions of unit shaft resis-
tance both for the single pile and for some instrumented piles
in groups QZ2L, QZ4L, and QZ9L at intermediate load steps
during the load tests. Tables 3 and 4 show the unit shaft
resistance for the single piles and the individual instrumented
piles in the pile groups when the settlement for tested pile or

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1308
The residual form of eqs. [A1] to [A3] can be expressed as
n 1. START with an assumed very small initial value of ␣5, and then
兺α K
Qj
[A5] r(αij)i ⫽ wg ⫺ ij
j⫽1 tj
This residual r(␣ij)i, which is a function of the interaction
coefficients, is the difference between the measured and cal-
culated pile top settlement for pile type i. The coefficient of
interaction vector is defined as ␣ ⫽ {␣1, ␣2, ␣3, ␣4, ␣5}. A
possible objective function is the sum of the settlement differ-
ences, represented by the Frobenius norm 㛳r㛳2 of the residual
vector r ⫽ {r1, r2, r3, r4, r5}. The optimization problem can
now be expressed as finding the minimum of 㛳r㛳2.
The solution to this optimization problem is obtained by
finding the optimal interaction coefficients ␣optimum at which
the minimum residual 㛳r㛳2,min is obtained. We can obtain the
Can. Geotech. J. Vol. 49, 2012
optimal values of the interaction coefficients using the Sim-
plex method. The algorithm for this is summarized as follows;
calculate ␣1 to ␣4 through the constraint eq. [A4].
2. LOOP with the constraint that ⱍαiⱍ ⬍ 1 for i ⫽ 1, 2,. . .,5.
3. INCREMENT ␣5 by a small amount to obtain its current
value ␣5,current and calculate new values ␣1,current to
␣4,current of the other interaction coefficients through the
constraint eq. [A4].
4. COMPUTE the Frobenius norm of residual 㛳r㛳2,current for
current values ␣current of the interaction coefficients.
5. IF 㛳r㛳2,current ⬍ 㛳r㛳2,min. this means the current interaction
coefficient vector is a better solution, so update the solu-
tion by setting 㛳r㛳2,min ⫽ 㛳r㛳2,current , and ␣optimum ⫽ ␣current.
6. ENDLOOP.
7. END with optimal interaction coefficient vector ␣optimum
and 㛳r㛳2,min.
Published by NRC Research Press
 Principles in the design of single-sludge
activated-sludge systems for biological
removal of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus
Mark C. Wentzel and George A. Ekama
ABSTRACT: The function of the single-sludge activated-sludge sys
tem has expanded from chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal to
include, progressively, nitrification, denitrification, and phosphorus re
moval, all biological. With such complexity, design procedures based
on fundamental behavioral patterns are required. The fundamental prin
ciples of a steady-state model for biological excess phosphorus removal
(BEPR) that is based on the current understanding of the mechanisms
of BEPR are described. The model can be used for design and to predict
the expected system response under constant flow and load conditions.
With the aid of the model, the influence of various parameters on the
magnitude of phosphorus removal and the interactions between BEPR
and nitrification and denitrification are examined. Principle variables
that influence phosphorus removal are an influent wastewater character
istic?readily biodegradable chemical oxygen demand concentration?
and process design parameters?anaerobic mass fraction and its subdi
vision and sludge age. Also, the model indicates that, in agreement with
observations, preventing recycling of nitrate to the anaerobic reactor is
one of the main considerations in design. Water Environ. Res., 69, 1222
(1997).
KEYWORDS: design, activated sludge, nitrogen, phosphorus, bio
logical excess phosphorus removal, models.
To comply with more stringent effluent legislation, the func
tions of the activated-sludge system have expanded to progres
sively include the biological removal of carbon (C), nitrogen
(N), and phosphorus (P). Not only have these expansions in
creased the complexity of the system configuration and its oper
ation, but concomitantly the number of biological processes
influencing the effluent quality and the number of compounds
involved in these processes have increased. With such complex
ities designs based on experience or semiempirical methods no
longer will provide optimal performance, and design procedures
based on more fundamental behavioral patterns are required.
To meet this requirement, over the past two decades the research
group at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, has devel
oped steady-state design models based on a simplified conceptu
alization of the behavior of the activated-sludge system. These
models have progressively included aerobic COD removal and
nitrification (Dold et al, 1980, and Marais and Ekama, 1976),
anoxic denitrification (Dold et al, 1991; van Haandel et al,
1981 ; and WRC, 1984), and anaerobic-anoxic-aerobic biologi
cal excess phosphorus removal (Wentzel et al, 1990 and 1992).
The models enable system design and operational parameters
to be readily identified, provide guidance in selecting values for
these parameters, and quantify the expected behavior of the
system.
In this paper, the steady-state design model of Wentzel et al
(1990) for biological excess phosphorus removal (BEPR) will
be used (with the values for model constants given by Wentzel
et al.) to evaluate the influence of various system parameters
and wastewater characteristics on the system response and, thus,
identify the more important parameters for design and operation.
To achieve this, it is necessary first to gain an understanding
of the fundamental principles incorporated in the model.
System Configuration and Organism Groups
The expansion in function of the activated-sludge system has
been accomplished by manipulating the system configuration
(through the incorporation of multiple in-series reactors, some
aerated and others not, with various interreactor recycles) and
the wastewater characteristics (through, for example, primary
sedimentation or acid fermentation of primary sludge). The ob
jective of these manipulations is to create environmental condi
tions in the activated-sludge system that are conducive to the
optimal growth and action of organisms that naturally perform
the biological reactions necessary to treat the wastewater: aero
bic zones for nitrification, anoxic zones for denitrification, and
an anaerobic-aerobic sequence of zones, with the influent fed
to the anaerobic zone, for BEPR. For purposes of design, in the
highly diverse mixed cultures that develop in these activated
sludge systems, only the mass behavior of populations or groups
of organisms is considered. The principal organism groups, their
functions, and the zones in which these functions are performed
are summarized in Table 1.
From Table 1, for the design of nitrification-denitrification
BEPR (NDBEPR) activated-sludge systems, three organism
groups and their interactions must be taken into account (Went
zel et al, 1992): (1) heterotrophic organisms unable to accumu
late polyphosphate (poly-P), termed ordinary heterotrophs; (2)
heterotrophic organisms able to accumulate poly-P, genetically
called poly-P organisms (and variously phosphotrophs, bio-P
organisms, or phosphorus-accumulating organisms); and (3) au
totrophic organisms mediating nitrification, termed autotrophs
or nitrifiers. This paper focuses on the poly-P organism group,
which mediates BEPR.
Principle of the Biological Excess Phosphorus
Removal Design Model
In BEPR, the biological uptake and removal of phosphorus
by the activated sludge is in excess of the normal metabolic
requirements. Basically, the amount of phosphorus incorporated
in the sludge is increased from the "normal" value of approxi
mately 0.03 mg P/mg volatile suspended solids (VSS) to values
1222 Water Environment Research, Volume 69, Number 7
 Wentzel and Ekama

Table 1?Principal organism groups included in models for activated-sludge systems, their functions, and the zones
in which these functions are performed.

Organism Biological process Zone

1. Ordinary heterotrophs (unable to accumulate poly-P) COD removal (organic degradation; dissolved oxygen uptake) Aerobic
Ammonification (organic-N -* NH4+) Aerobic
Denitrification (organic degradation; N03_ -> N02~ -" N2) Anoxic
Fermentation (F-RBCODa -> SCFA) Anaerobic
2. Poly-P heterotrophs (accumulate poly-P) P release (SCFAb uptake; PHAC storage) Anaerobic
P release (SCFA uptake; PHA storage) Anoxic
P uptake (PHA degradation; denitrification?) Anoxic
P uptake; P removal (PHA degradation; dissolved oxygen uptake) Aerobic
3. Autotrophs (nitrifiers) Nitrification (NH4+ -? N02~ -> N03_; dissolved oxygen uptake) Aerobic

a Fermentable readily biodegradable COD.

b Short-chain fatty acid.
c Polyhydroxyalkanoate.

of approximately 0.06 to 0.15 mg P/mg VSS. This is achieved to SCFA before this COD fraction becomes available to the
by stimulating the growth of poly-P organisms (see Table 1), poly-P organisms. This conversion is an acid fermentation medi
which store large quantities of phosphorus internally as poly ated by the ordinary heterotrophs (for details see Wentzel et
Pi the poly-P organisms can incorporate up to 0.38 mg P/mg
VSS (Wentzel et al, 1989 and 1990). To stimulate the growth
of poly-P organisms in the activated-sludge system, two condi
15
tions are required: (1) an anaerobic-aerobic sequence of reac
EXAMPLE
tors, and (2) the presence of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in SETTLED SEWAGE"
the anaerobic reactor (Wentzel et al, 1986 and 1991). In such
a BEPR system the ordinary heterotrophs and poly-P organisms
coexist; the larger the proportion of poly-P organisms that can
CO SETTLED SEWAGEl
be stimulated to grow in the system, the greater the percent < fs,us=0.12
phosphorus content of the activated sludge and, accordingly, CO fs,up=0.04
CO
the larger the amount of phosphorus that can be removed from >
the influent. Thus, the problem in design is to determine the O)
E
CL 10
proportion of the poly-P and ordinary heterotrophic organisms
present in the activated sludge, which will determine the percent D)
phosphorus content of the VSS mass. The relative proportion e
EXAMPLE
of the two organism groups depends, to a large degree, on the CO
RAW
fraction of the influent wastewater biodegradable COD that each CO SEWAGE
<
organism group obtains: the greater the proportion of biodegrad
able COD the poly-P organisms obtain, the greater their fraction CO
in the mixed liquor, the greater the percent phosphorus content
of the mixed liquor, and the greater the BEPR. This relationship
5 RAW SEWAGE
fs,us = 0.07
is shown graphically in Figure 1. fs,up=0.15
The steady-state model of Wentzel et al (1990) provides the LU
means to divide the influent wastewater biodegradable COD O
between the poly-P and ordinary heterotrophs. The principles
?
for this subdivision are illustrated diagrammatically in Figure Z
P REMOVAL =
%P x VSS MASS
LU SLUDGE AGE x Qlr
2. In Figure 2 it can be seen that the biodegradable COD com O
prises two fractions, the RBCOD and the slowly biodegradable rr
LU
COD (SBCOD). Experiments and experience have indicated a.
that for South African wastewaters, the magnitude of BEPR is Sludge age=20d
strongly linked to the influent RBCOD concentration and that Temperature=20?C
the SBCOD contributes negligibly to the growth of the poly-P -L i i i i i i i i i i i i i
organisms and, hence, to the BEPR (Nicholls et al, 1984; Pit
0 10 20 30 40
man, 1991; and Wentzel et al, 1994). With regard to the PROPORTION OF B
RBCOD, this also has two fractions, SCFAs (also called volatile OBTAINED BY POL
fatty acids) and the non-SCFAs termed fermentable RBCOD
(F-RBCOD). The SCFA component is directly available to the Figure 1?Percentage o
poly-P organisms for uptake in the anaerobic reactor. However, sus the proportion of b
the F-RBCOD first requires conversion in the anaerobic reactor age) obtained by the p

November/December 1997 1223

Wentzel and Ekama

INFLUENT WASTEWATER COD UN BIO DEGRAD ABLE of the resultant SCFA by the poly-P o
SOLUBLE COD (effluent)
phosphorus release; and, hence, the pro
BIODEGRADABLE COD UNBIODEGRADABLE PARTICULATE COD COD available to the poly-P organis

I
RBCOD
1 SBCOD
biodegradable COD is available to the
Having quantified the biodegradable C
~T~
| F-RBCOD
EXTERNAL ACID
FERMENTATION
obtains, their respective active biom
masses can be calculated using the m
INTERNAL
INERT VSS Further, from the influent wastewater
ACIDIF
ICATION ACCUMULATION late COD, the inert mass can be calcu
NO make up the mixed liquor volatile su
VOLATILE FATTY ACIDS

I
To illustrate, the percentage composit
are shown in Figures 3a and 3b for ty
NON-POLY P ORGANISMS
POLYP ORGANISMS and settled wastewaters, respectively

T
ENHANCED CULTURE
T
USUAL ACTIVATED SLUDGE
shown: system at a temperature of 2
anaerobic reactors, with total anaerob
STEADY STATE 15% and no nitrate recycled to the ana
STEADY STATE EQUATIONS
EQUATIONS the phosphorus content of each of th
(0.38 mg P/mg VSS for the poly-P a
POLY P ORGANISM USUAL ORGANISM
ACTIVE MASS mg P/mg VSS for the other fractions
ACTIVE MASS
0.38 mg-P/mg-VSS 0.03 mg-P/mg-VSS
phosphorus removal for each sludge f
liquor wastage?the system phosphoru
INERT MASS by the summation of the individual ph
POLY P ORGANISM USUAL ORGANISM
ENDOGENOUS ENDOGENOUS From the above, the design procedur
0.03 mg-P/mg-VSS
MASS MASS oriented to maximize the conversion
0.03 mg-P/mg-VSS 0.03 mg-P/mg-VSS
the anaerobic reactor. The influence o

I I I
operational parameters and wastewate
MIXED VSS IN SYSTEM HAS VARIABLE P CONTENT and hence on the poly-P o
conversion,
(MASS P/MASS VSS %) DEPENDING ON
tude of BEPR, is demonstrated below u
PROPORTION OF BIODEGRADABLE COD OBTAINED
zel
BY THE POLY-PHOSPHATE ORGANISMS et al. (1990).

Figure 2?Diagram of influent Factors Influencing

biodegradable the Magnitud
and non
biodegradable COD routes to Phosphorus Removal
biomass (VSS) solids
showing the biological processes By
thatmeans of thethe
influence steady-state
pro BEPR
portion of biodegradable COD obtained
1990), theby the poly-P
phosphorus removal respon
organisms, which in turn influences the percentage
be examined of
under different modes of
phosphorus in the biomass (VSS) wastewaters
solids. with different characteri
fluence the phosphorus removal can b
water and system characteristics.
Wastewater characteristics:
al, 1985, 1990, and 1991). Thus, the poly-P organisms are
largely dependent on the ordinary heterotrophs because
Influent total the
COD, lat
Sti;
ter generate the SCFA. In South Africa the concentration
Fraction of Sti that isof nonbiodegrad
SCFAs in municipal wastewater is lowfs,uP (Pitman, ' Sti, 1995,
whereand fs,up Wen is the mass fr
tzel et al, 1988a) so that these need to able be particulate
generated in COD; the
anaerobic zone of the activated-sludge system (Wentzel
Fraction of Sti that is nonbiodegradab et al,
1985 and 1990). Should nitrate or oxygen be input to the
=fs,us ' SH, where fSyUS is the mass fanaero
bic reactor, the ordinary heterotrophs able
use the SCFA themselves
soluble COD;
with nitrate/oxygen as the external electron
Biodegradable acceptor. Accord
influent COD, Sbi = S
ingly, the SFCAs available to the poly-P andorganisms are reduced,
and correspondingly, so is the BEPR. External
Fractionacid of Sbifermentation
that is readily biodeg
of primary sludge changes some of the Sbi, SBCOD
wherein the primary
fStbs is the mass fraction
sludge to SCFA and F-RBCOD, which pass to the anaerobic
reactor. This has the effect of providing
For a "normal"more biodegradableunsettled municipal w
COD to the poly-P organisms (see Figure
rica, fs,Up 2) and, hence, will
= 0.\5,fStUS = 0.07, and fs,b
increase the BEPR (Barnard, 1984;water,/^
Lilley et al,
= 0.04,'fs,us 1990;
= 0.12, andfSM L?tter
= 0.38.
and Pitman, 1992; Pitman, 1995; Pitman et al, 1983 and 1992;
System characteristics:
and Rabinowitz and Oldham, 1985).
The model of Wentzel et al quantifiesSludge
theage, Rs = (mass of
uptake ofsludge in system)/(mass wasted
influent
per day).
SCFA by the poly-P organisms; the conversion in the anaerobic
r-Recycle (primary heterotrophs,
reactor of F-RBCOD to SCFA by the ordinary anoxic to anaerobic) in University of
taking into account the input of nitrateCape Town (UCT)-type and s-recycle
or oxygen; (underflow recycle)
the uptake

1224 Water Environment Research, Volume 69, Number 7

 Wentzel and Ekama

100r i100 200r 100

RAW WASTEWATER WITH SETTLED WASTEWATER
WITH
750 mgCOD/l BEPR 450 mgCOD/l BEPR
0.07 fs,us 180 0.12 fs,us 90
0.15 fs,up 0.04 fs,up
25% RBCOD FRACTION 38% RBCOD FRACTION
80 80 O 160 80
LU
CO CO Additional VSS solids in system
co CO
< treating raw wastewater ie. raw 70
< INERT MASS C 140[ wastewater produces about 100%
CO CO more VSS mass
CO CO (0
> 60 60 > </> 120 60
u, <
o NON POLY-P
z ENDOGENOUS
o MASS S 100f INERT MASS
50

CO
O
a.
40 \ NON POLY-P
40 o
Q.
80 NON POLY-P 40
ACTIVE MASS ENDOGENOUS MASS
O POLY-P O
O ENDOGENOUS ? 5) 60 NON POLY-P
30
MASS O ACTIVE MASS
CL
20 20 O 40 20
?
POLY-P ACTIVE 20 POLY-P ACTIVE POLY-P 10
MASS MASS ENDOG.MASS
1 ' ' I ' ' ' ' 1 ' ' ' i i i i i i i
O1^ i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i i

10 15 20 25 30 0 10 15 20 25 30

SLUDGE AGE (d) SLUDGE AGE (d)

(a) (b)
Figure 3?Percentage composition of VSS mass for nitrification-denitrification systems with B
and (b) settled wastewater.

in Modified Bardenpho?-and Johannesburg-typetor. Accepting zero discharge of nitrate and oxygen to th

systems
(see Figure 4). obic reactor, the influence of the following design parame
the magnitude of phosphorus removal at 20?C is demonst
Anaerobic mass fraction, fxa = (mass of sludge in anaerobic
zone)/(total mass of sludge in system).
Sludge age (Rs),
Series or single anaerobic reactor configuration.
Anaerobic sludge mass fraction (fxa),
The wastewater and system characteristics above affect Total
theinfluent COD (Sti),
Number of anaerobic reactors (N), and
phosphorus removal directly. Indirect effects result from nitri
Raw or settled wastewater.
fication and denitrification, which may affect the nitrate dis
charged to the anaerobic reactor (discussed later). The nitrate
Sludge Age and Anaerobic Mass Fraction. Accepting t
effect, in turn, depends on the temperature, maximum specific
South African raw wastewater characteristics (see abov
growth rate of the nitrifiers, denitrification design of the plant
a COD of 500 mg COD/L, and assuming that no nitrate
(location of anoxic reactors, anoxic mass fractions, theandanaerobic
the s reactor and that a recycle ratio to the an
and a-recycles), and the influent wastewater ratio ofzonetotal
ofKjel
1:1 is present, phosphorus removal versus slud
dahl nitrogen (TKN) to COD (WRC, 1984 and In press). Tem in Figure 5 for a single anaerobic reactor with
is shown
perature also may have a direct influence on BEPR; this0.10,
0.05, has 0.15, 0.20, and 0.25. On the same plots, P rem
not yet been established, but the effect seems to beSti relatively
also is shown. The plots indicate the following:
small (Pilson et al, 1995), provided the aerobic sludge age is
Effect of Rs on phosphorus removal is complex. For a
sufficient to sustain the poly-P organisms. The effect of washout
of poly-P organisms is not included in the steady-stateof less than 3 days, the phosphorus removal increases
model
of Wentzel et al (1990), so that a minimum aerobic sludge an increase
age in Rs; however, for an Rs of greater th
to maintain BEPR at a specific temperature (Marnais and days,
Jenphosphorus removal decreases with an incre
kins, 1992) cannot be determined with the model. Rs. The reason for this is that increase in Rs cause
Zero Discharge of Oxygen and Nitrate to Anaerobic increase
Reac in the system's ordinary heterotrophic activ

November/December 1997 1225

Table of contents
Acronyms ...................................................................................................................................................... 2
Glossary of Nutrient Removal Terms ......................................................................................................... 3-8
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. 9-13
Nitrogen removal ................................................................................................................................... 13-17
Phosphorus removal .............................................................................................................................. 18-24
Monitoring and process control analyses .............................................................................................. 25-38
India ink stain for exocellular lipopolysaccharides ..................................................................................... 37
Calculations for biological nitrogen and phosphosphorus removal ...................................................... 39-42
Optimization and troubleshooting guides ............................................................................................. 43-61
Guide #1: Loadings ............................................................................................................................... 44
Guide #2: Aeration/mixing – diffused aeration.................................................................................... 49
Guide #3: Aeration/mixing – mechanical ............................................................................................. 51
Guide#4: Biomass inventory................................................................................................................. 53
Guide #5: Clarifier operation ................................................................................................................ 55
Guide #6: Internal recycle .................................................................................................................... 57
Guide #7: pH/alkalinity ......................................................................................................................... 58
Guide #8: Toxicity ................................................................................................................................. 59
Guide #9: Sudden loss of chemical phosphorus removal .................................................................... 60
Guide#10: Gradual loss of chemical phosphorus removal ................................................................... 61
References for biological nutrient removal ................................................................................................ 62
Chemical phosphorus removal ................................................................................................................... 63
MPCA Wastewater Contacts ..................................................................................................................... 699
Tables 1-11
Table 1: Phosphorus in domestic wastewater ..................................................................................... 18
Table 2: Optimum dissolved oxygen levels in zones ............................................................................ 28
Table 3: Desired conditions and millivolt meter readings by zone ...................................................... 33
Table 4: Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater reference methods ........ 35
Table 5: Suggested daily process control calculations for optimum BNR ............................................ 36
Table 6: Process control parameters .................................................................................................... 38
Table 7: Possible sources of nutrients and nutrient removal problems .............................................. 42
Table 8: Characteristics of frequently used phosphorus removal chemicals....................................... 63
Table 9: Chemical information ............................................................................................................. 64
Table 10: Advantages and disadvantages of different addition points................................................ 66
Table 11: Weight ratios for commonly used metal salts ...................................................................... 67

Biological Nutrient Removal | Contents 1

Acronyms
Nitrogen Phosphorus
N Elemental form of nitrogen P Elemental form of phosphorus
N₂ Atmospheric nitrogen (nitrogen gas) PO₄³⁻ Orthophosphate
NO₂⁻ Nitrite TP Total phosphorus
NO₃⁻N Nitrate H3PO4 Phosphoric acid
NOx Oxidized forms of nitrogen (nitrate & nitrite)
NH₃⁻ Ammonia nitrogen
NH₄⁺ Ammonium
TKN Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen

Other chemicals
O₂ Oxygen
NaOH Sodium hydroxide
H₂SO₄ Sulfuric acid
F₃Cl₃ Ferric chloride
NaOCl Sodium hypochlorite
Cl₂ Chlorine

Process control Other

BNR Biological nutrient removal NPDES National Pollution Discharge
BOD Biochemical oxygen demand Elimination System
CBOD Carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand
COD Chemical oxygen demand
DO Dissolved oxygen
HRT Hydraulic retention time
MLSS Mixed liquor suspended solids
MLVSS Mixed liquor volatile suspended solids
ORP Oxidation reduction potential
PAO Phosphorus accumulating organisms
RAS Return activated sludge
SBOD Soluble biochemical oxygen demand
SRT Solids retention time
SVI Sludge volume index
TDS Total dissolved solids
TS Total solids
TSS Total suspended solids
VS Volatile solids
VSS Volatile suspended solids
WAS Waste activated sludge

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