Preliminary Wastewater
Treatment
Levels of Treatment
Wastewater Treatment
• Preliminary – Removes Solids
–Physical Operations – Screening
• Primary – Removes Solids
–Physical Operations – Sedimentation
• Secondary – Removes Organics
–Biological Operations
• Tertiary – Removes Nutrients
–Biological and Chemical Operations
Preliminary Wastewater Treatment
The purpose of preliminary treatment is:
- to ensure a satisfactory quality of final effluent
and final sludge product and
- to protect the treatment process from malfunction
associated with accumulation of screenings,
debris, inorganic grit, excessive scum formation or
loss of efficiency associated with grease or oil
films or fat accumulations.
Wastewater Treatment (Preliminary)
Bar Racks
and Screens
Bar racks and screens remove
large solids which could clog
pumps and pipes in the
wastewater treatment plant.
Solids are collected and sent to a
landfill.
Screen
➢ A screen is a device with openings for removing
bigger suspended or floating matter in sewage,
➢ The incoming wastewater is passed through the bars
or screens and periodically the accumulated material
is removed,
➢ The screens may be cleaned either manually or by
means of automatically operated rakes,
➢ The solids removed by these units can be disposed
of by burial or incineration.
Classification of Screens:
Coarse Screens:
– Have clear openings ranging from 6
to 150 mm,
Fine Screens:
– Have clear openings less than 6 mm.
Bar Screens:
– They consist of vertical or inclined
parallel steel bars equally spaced across a
channel through which the wastewater
flows.
Manually cleaned bar screens: are used
primarily in old treatment facilities.
Mechanically cleaned bar screens:
are used nearly in all new wastewater
treatment facilities. Compared with manually
cleaned screens, they better handle large
quantities of screenings and reduce nuisance
and labor cost. They typically have openings
ranging from 6 – 38 mm with bar set from 00
to 300 from vertical.
Design of Coarse Screen Installations
Considerations in the design of coarse screen
installations include:
1. Location.
2. Approach velocity.
3. Clear openings between bars.
4. Headloss through the screens.
5. Screening handling, processing and disposal.
Design Criteria
1. For most installations two or more units
should be installed so that one unit may be
taken out for maintenance at any time.
4. The headloss through the bar racks should be limited to 150 mm.
Where:
hL = headloss, m
C = an empirical discharge coefficient to account for turbulence and eddy
losses, typically 0.7 for a clean screen and 0.6 for a clog screen,
V2 = velocity of flow through the openings of the bar screen, m/s
V1 = approach velocity in upstream channel, m/s
g = acceleration due to gravity, 9.81 m/s2
Design of the bar screen channel (Approach channel)
The cross section of the bar screen channel is
determined from the continuity equation
W= √(A_c/1.5)
Usually, rectangular channels are used, and the ratio
between depth and width is taken as 1.5 to give the
most efficient section.
The cross section of the bar screen is given by the
following equation:
Where As = bar screen cross section, m2
Ө = inclination angle of the screen
The net area of the bar screen available for flow
is given by the following equation:
Where
S = space between bars ,m
tbar= thickness of the screen bars, m
The number of bars in the screen is given by the
following equation:
n tbar + (n-1)S = W
Example 1:
A manual bar screen is to be used in an approach channel
with a maximum velocity of 0.60 m/s, and a design flow of
300 L/s. the bars are 10 mm thick and openings are 3 cm
wide, the angle of inclination is 50o. Determine:
1) The cross section of the channel, and the dimension
needed
2) The velocity between bars
3) The number of bars in the screen
1) The cross section of the channel, and the
dimension needed
Ac = Qd / Va
= 0.3/0.60 = 0.5 m2
Ac = W x d
Ac = W x1.5W
=1.5 W x W
W = 0.577 m, d= 1.5x0.6 = 0.9 m
2) The velocity between bars
From continuity equation
Va Ac = Vb Anet
Vb =(Va Ac ) / Anet
The area of the bar screen is given by the
following equation:
The net area of the bar screen available for flow
is given by the following equation:
The velocity between bars
Va Ac = Vb Anet
3) The number of bars in the screen
n tbar + (n-1)S = W
n x 1 + (n-1) x 3 = 60
n = 14.75 = 15
Example #2,
Headloss Buildup in coarse Screens
Solution
Vb Anet = Vbc x (0.7 Anet )
Vbc = Vb / 0.7
Grit Removal
Grit is small materials like sand, gravel, and heavy solid
materials such as metal fragments, ……. etc.
Grit Removal are provided for:
1. protect mechanical equipment and pumps
from abnormal abrasive wear
2. prevents pipe clogging by its deposition
3. reduces accumulation in settling tanks and
digesters.
Grit chambers
Aerated Grit chambers are basins in which air
introduced through diffusers along one side of
the chamber near the bottom causes a spiral roll
velocity pattern perpendicular to flow through the
chamber. The heavier particles (with high settling
velocities) drop to the bottom, while the roll
keeps the lighter organic solids suspended.
Advantages of aerated grit chambers
1. Consistent removal efficiency over a wide flow
range
2. A relatively low putrescible organic content may
be removed with a well controlled rate of
aeration
3. Aerated grit chambers are versatile, allowing for
chemical addition, mixing, preaeration, and
flocculation.
DESIGN CRITERIA of Aerated Grit Removal
With respect to grit removal systems, grit
is traditionally defined as particles
larger than 0.21 mm (0.008 in) (65
mesh) and with a specific gravity of
greater than 2.65.
Aerated grit chambers are typically designed to
remove particles of 70 mesh (0.21
mm/0.008 in) or larger, with a detention
period of two to five minutes at peak hourly
flow. When wastewater flows into the grit
chamber, particles settle to the bottom
according to their size, specific gravity, and
the velocity of roll in the tank.
A velocity that is too high will result in
lower grit removal efficiencies, while a
velocity that is too low will result in
increased removal of organic materials.
Proper adjustment of air velocity
will result in nearly 100 percent
removal of the desired particle
size and a well-washed grit.
Design considerations for aerated grit chambers
are:
1. Air rates typically range from 0.3 to 0.7 m3 /min•m
of tank length.
2. A typical minimum hydraulic detention time at
maximum instantaneous flow is two minutes.
3. Typical length-to-width ratio is 2.5:1 to 5:1.
4. Tank inlet and outlet are positioned so the flow is
perpendicular to the spiral roll pattern.
4. Baffles are used to dissipate energy and minimize
short circuiting.
Typical design information for aerated Grit Chambers
Item unit Range Typical
Detention time of peak min 2-5 3
flowrate
Dimensions:
Depth m 2-5
Length m 7.5 - 20
Width m 2.5 - 7
Width-depth ratio Ratio 1:1 to 5:1
length-width ratio Ratio 3:1 to 5:1 1.5:1
Air supply per unit of length m3/m.min 0.2-0.5 4:1
Grit quantities m3/103 m3 0.004 - 0.20 0.015
Example: Design of Aerated Grit Chamber:
Design an aerated grit chamber for the treatment of
municipal wastewater. The average flow rate is 0.5 m3/s.
Assume the following data:
▪ Peak factor 2.75
▪ Detention time at the peak flowrate = 3 min
• Width to depth ratio = 1.2 : 1 and depth of 3m,
• Air supply 0.3 m3/min.m of length
• Grit quantity = 0.05 m3/103 m3
• Number of chamers is 2.
Solution:
1) The peak flowrate Design
2) Grit chamber volume
V=Qt
3) Dimensions of each grit chamber:
Width = (1.2) (3 m) = 3.6m
4) Detention time in each grit chamber at
average flow:
5) Air supply requirements:
6) Quantity of grit at peak flow
Thank you
