Important Aspects Of Sewage Water Treatment System

By Stephanie Richardson


Sewage water is drawn from residences and commercial buildings. The sources of domestic wastewater include the toilet, laundry, dishwashers, plumbing fixtures, and so on. In the commercial setting the water comes from a wide range or sources including manufacturing plants, restaurants, hospitals, and so on. In a sewage water treatment system, water (comprising about 90% of the effluent) is separated from the solid waste before being reused or disposed of.

For every region, state or country there are a number of guidelines that govern the setting up and maintenance of the treatment plant. You need to be in touch with the local authorities so as to know what exactly applies for your area. Most on-site plants that are installed comprise a two-stage process. Those that serve cities and townships are usually more advanced and incorporate four levels of treatment.

The first stage is known as primary treatment. In this stage, large objects such as rags, wood and plastic are removed using fine screens. The sewage is then aerated to remove the finer articles (mainly grit and sand). The resultant effluent is allowed to undergo sedimentation which allows any residual objects to settle at the bottom of the tank. The solid layer formed is known as sludge.

The effluent from the primary stage is pumped into another set of tanks (or digesters). These tanks contain both aerobic and anaerobic bacterial organisms. The bacteria help to break down any organic materials and to rid the effluent of nutrients. Sedimentation is repeated to remove solid waste further and form more sludge. The water that settles at the top is referred to as secondary effluent and is released to a large holding pond.

The tertiary stage is the final stage. A number of processes take place here. Biological filters are used to optimize on the other stages. The filters biodegrade any organic matter left from the other stages and also reduce the levels of foam, ammonia, oil and grease. Disinfection is done using chlorine, ozone and UV radiation. The color clears and odor is eliminated after all these process.

There are a number of systems that may slightly differ in the stages that are involved but the result is almost the same in the end. For instance, some of them (especially the traditional ones) use enzymes as opposed to the aerobic and anaerobic microorganisms. The enzyme based filtration system involves the addition of a blend of enzymes to the effluent to help with the breakdown of organic matter.

The enzyme based system appears to be falling out of favor due to a number of disadvantages that have been realized. One of the major disadvantages is the fact that it is not practically possible to produce all the enzymes required to biodegrade all the organic matter in the effluent. This makes the system less efficient. Additionally, it is a more expensive undertaking. When microorganisms are used they can synthesize each of the required enzymes.

The available options for sewage water treatment include setting up your own onsite plant or connecting to the local area sewerage line. Due to the high level of expertise and high maintenance costs involved in setting up advanced systems many people opt for a two stage system. It is important to be aware of the installation guidelines that apply in your area before embarking on the task.




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