SCG —1 Introduction 1.1. Systems of Sanitation The waste products of a society including the human excreta had been collected, carried and disposed of manually to_a safe point of disposal, by the Sweepers, since time immemorial, This primitive “tiethod of collecting and disposing of the society’s wastes, has now been modernised and replaced by a systemi, in which these wastes aré mixed with sulfcient quantily of water and cartiol Toes closed conduits under the conditions « of gravity flow. This mixture_ of water and waste products, populatly cal ly called sewage, thus auto- matically flows up to a place, from where it is disposed of, after giving it suitable treatments ; thus avoiding the carriage of wastes on heads or carts. The treated sewage effluents may be disposed of either in a running body of water, such as a stream, or may be used for irrigating crops. _ ~ — “This modern water-carried sewerage* system has completely replaced the old conservancy system of sanitation in the developed countries like U.S.A. However, India being a developing country, still uses the old conservancy system at various places, particularly in her villages and smaller towns. The metropolitan cities and a few bigger towns of our country, no doubt, have generally been equipped with the facilities of this modern water carriage sewerage system ; and attempts are being made to equip the remaining cities and towns with this system, as soon as funds become available. The modern water-carried sewerage system is preferred to the old conservancy system, because of its following advantages : (@ The water carriage system is more hygienic, because in this system, the society’s wastes have not to be collected and carried in buckets or carts, as is required to be done in the conservancy system. The free carriage of night soil in carts or as head load, which is required in the conservancy system, may pose health hazards to “The term sewerage is applied to the art of collecting, treating and finally disposing of the sewage. (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerINTRODUCTION 3 | 1.2. Types of Sewage, and Types of Sewerage Systems This modern water carriage sewerage system not only helps in removing the dow “and industrial’ wastewaters, but also helps in removiiig slorm water drainage"*". The run off resulting from the storms if also sometimes carried through the sewers of the sewerage system, oF more generally is carried through separate eet of drains (open or closed) directly discharging their drainage waters into a body of water, such as a lake or a river. Since the rain run-off is not'so foul as the sewage is, no treatment is generally required to be given to the drainage discharge. When the drainage is taken along with sewage, itis called a combined svstem | and when the drainage and sewage are taken independently of each other through two different sets of conduits, it is called a separate system. Some- tines, a part of drainage water, especially that originating from the roofs or paved courtyards of buildings, is allowed to be admitted into the sewers ; and similarly sometimes, the domestic se ing out from the residencesor institutions; ete., is allowed tobe admitted into the drains, the resulting system is called a partially separate system. Strictly speaking, it is generally advantageous and economical to construct a ‘separate system’ at least in the bigger cities and towns. But in practice, it is generally not possible to attain a ‘truly separate system’ because some rain water may always find its way into the sewers either through wrong house sewer connections or through open manhole covers. Similarly, wherever the authorities find in- sufficient sewer capacities, they divert part of the sewage into the storm water drains, thus making most of our existing systems as ‘partially separate’ only. *Domestic sewage consists of liquid wastes originating from urinals, latrines, bath-rooms, kitchen sinks, wash basins, ete. of the residential, commercial or institutional buildings. This sewage is generally extremely foul, becayse of the presence of human excreta in it. . *Industrial sewage consists of liquid wastes originating from the industrial processes of various industries, such as Dyeing, Paper making, Brewing, ete. The quality of the industrial sewage depends largely upon the type of industry and the éhemicals used in their process waters. Sometimes, they may be very foul and may require extensive treatment before being disposed of in public sewers. ‘The sum total of domestic and industrial sewage, may be termed as sanitary sewage or simply sewage. ***The run-off resulting from the rain storms was used to be called storm sewage, but the modern approach is to call it storm drainage oF simply drainage, so as to differentiate it from sewage, which is much more foul as compared to drainage, and requires treatment before disposal. (@ scanned with OKEN Scannersouuess Na¥O Yalm pauueDs a) ea DE heir Testi 186 . of SewaBe ee to determs : ‘ried out in order to determin, aie for determinin sical wage 15 des: bests 8 (i) 78 Phy? nl oe this inelude erature. These tests Physi! examil A ee rand (iv) temp" its phys! alour ; (0 7 bling dirty dj, h bit ty 5 i) co ‘ rbid, reseml ig y is a euramarised below go is normally tw other floating matter like @ Turbidity. a from baths hae is, match-sticks, Breases, wees of Pape SERENE A ve turbidity increase, cater or waste ‘ feeel matter, coed Pt Lined coaps, ete & vegetable debris, fr * eee es es stronge! d and tested by lity aes peaerar raw water suppplied, turbidity ean tin ihe degron ters, asis done deed hapter 8, of “Water rods or by turbidime' . I, chap' i in vo This has been thoroughly discussed Supply Engineering’. Jour of sewage can normally be detected by the Gi) Co eee the freshness of sewage. If i 62 our is ar eat fight brown, it indicates fresh sewage. owever, yellowish, grey, or it indicates stale and septic’ if is Jc or dark brown, phaadae cee Sea also be formed due to the presence of fic i i tes. some specific industrial wast ; (iii) Odour. Fresh sewage is practically odourless. ay however, in 3 to 4 hours, it becomes stale with all oxygen Present in sewage being practically exhausted. Jt then starts omitting offensive odours, especially that of hydrogen sulphide gas, which is formed due to decomposition of sewage. (iv) Temperature. The temperature has an effect on the biologi- P' iP tal activity of bacteria present in sewage, and it also affects the solubility of gases in sewage. In addition, temperature also affects the viscosity of Sewage, which, in turn, affects the sedimentation process in its treatment, thas normal temperature of sewage is generally slightly higher as os ae us water, because of additional heat added utilisation of in India is 20°C, whe ater, The average temperature of: sewage 3 Ss near about the ideal temperature for the biological activities, However, or dissolved oxygen content (0) ofeewage goat i masa ‘educed. 7.4. Chemical Characteristiog of Sewage and Thej ir wie eir Testin; sewage help in indicating : the stage of aoe aracteristies of strength, and extent and type of treatment age decomposition, its safe to the point of disposal. Tequired for making it ‘When all the oxygen has disappeared Raney mansouuess Na¥O Ualm pauueDs a) QuaLITY AND CHARACTERIStIcs gy SI SEWAGE Chemical analysis is, theref ‘sr getermine its chemi efore, carried jetermt ical characteris ed out on sewage j mining: teristics. It includes tere net les teats {i total solids, suspended solia for deter. : dss, (ii) pH value ; sand settleable (iii) chloride content ; (iv) nitrogen content ; (u) presence of fats, greas, ) ; > es, ‘ils ; (vi) Sulphides, sulphates Sa = (vii) dissolved oxygen ; i viechon oxygen demand (C.0.D. yi; ) bio-chemical oxygen demand (ob). These tests are briefly discussed below : solids ; 2S gas ; ee eave Suspended Solids and Settleable Solids* ly contains very small amount of solids in relation to the huge quantity of water (99.9%). It only containe about 0.05 to 0.1 per cent (i.e. 500 to 1000 mg/l) of total solids. Solids present in sewage may be in any of the four forms : suspended solids, dissolved solids, colloidal solids, and settleable solids. , Suspended solids are those solids which remain floating in sewage. Dissolved solids are those which remain dissolved in sewage just as salt in water. Colloidal solids are finely divided <0 ids remaining either in solution or in suspension. Settleable solids are that portion of solid matter which settles out, if sewage is allowed to remain undisturbed for a period of 2 hours. The proportion of these different types of solids is generally found to be as given below : It has been estimated that about 1000 kg of sewage contains about 0.45 kg of total solids, out of which 0.225 kg is in solution, 0.112 kg is in suspension, and 0.112 kg is settleable. Further, the solids in sewage comprise of both : the organic as well as inorganic solids. The organic matter works out to be pee 45 per cent of the total solids, and the remaining about 55 perc is the inorganic matter. *Partides more than 1 ym (micron) sili ; filterable solids, particle sizes Jess than Lum and up te Hon im a eds idals; and parti 0 wm are consi dis colloidals; and particles smaller than 10° mente a t coagulation, Particles more than 10 yin in sae tle vita ane removed omen nS” er called settleable solids. Particles s™souue>s Na¥O Yalm pauueDs a) LUTION ENGINE: if pISPOSAL AND AIR POLL Ep RING SpWAGE DIS / ba inernls and salts, like : say 5 of miner ; matter consist sulphates, ete. Inorganic is, chlorides, issolved sal vel, debris, dissolvec Syn. gravel, de its of () enrbohydratos Such 25 cellulog, Organic matter consists tc. (i) fats and oils received fron, 7 ar, ole 5 ° 7 shops, etc. (iii) nitrogenous compounds poate products, including wastes from con cotton, fibre, starch, kitchens, ae like proteins and their ¢ le » net as fatty acids, hydrocarbon: — | le, the presence of inorganic solids in sewage is he eae require only mechanical appliances for their ful. They erase plant: Onthe other hand, suspended an ae red nic solids are responsible for creating nuisance, if disposed aes The amounts of various kinds of solids Present in sewage can be determined as follows : (@) The total amount of solids (S, in mg/l) present in a given Sewage can be determined by evaporating a known volume of: Sewage sample, and weighing the dry residue left. The mass of the residue divided by the volume of the sample evaporated, will represent the total solids in mg/l, say Sy, (6) The suspended solids (82) are those solids which are retained by a filter of 1 um Pores ; and they are, therefore, also called as non-filterable solids. Their quantity can be determined by Passing a known volume of sewage sample through a glass-fiber filter “pparatus, and weighing the dry residue left: The mass of the residue divided by the volume of sample filtered, will Tepresent the Suspended solids, say (S)), in mell, (©) The difference between the total solids (8, solids (S2) will represen colloidals, or filterable Soli (@) Now, the total suspended velids (8,) may oi fixed. In order to determing their proportion, th residue of step (b) above, ig burnt and init.’ 4 te ony: electric muffle furnace for about 16 to 20 minenat nae due to ignition will represent the ean sola, Loss of weight volume filtered through the filter, Lo S In the sample and the suspended it nothing but dissolved soli ids plus ‘ls | Say Sy where Sy = S\-s a ther be volatile or concentration be S, (in git). “* ‘Ne Volatile suspended soltde (e) The difference S2-S,= S; (say) win. fixed solids, wil evidently Tepresent thesouuess Na¥O Yalm pauueDs a) QUALITY AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SEWAGE 193 initially form sulphides, which ultimately break down to form sul- phate ions (SO, ), which is a stable and product. The initial decomposition is associated with formation of HLS gas, which also ultimately gets oxidised to form sulphate ions. In anaerobic digestion of sewage, however, the anaerobic and facultative bacteria reduce the sulphur and its compounds into sulphides, with evolution of HS gas along with methane and carbon dioxide, thus causing very obnoxious smells and odours. If, however, the quantity of H2S in raw sewage is below 1 ppm, obnoxious odours are not felt. an unobjectionable end 7.4.7. Dissolved Oxygen (D.O.). The determination of dissolved oxygen present in sewage is very very important, because : while discharging the treated sewage into some river stream, it is neces- sary to ensure at least 4 ppm of D.O. in it ; as otherwise, fish are likely to be killed, creating nuisance near the vicinity of disposal. To ensure this, D.O. tests are performed during sewage disposal treat- ment processes. The D.O. test performed on sewage before treatment, helps in indicating the condition of sewage. It is well known by now, that only very fresh sewage contains some dissolved oxygen, which is soon depleted by aerobic decomposition. Also, the dissolved oxygen in fresh sewage depends upon temperature. If the temperature of sewage is more, the D.O. content will be less. The solubility of oxygen in sewage is 95% of that in distilled water. The D.O. content of sewage is generally determined by the Winkler’s method which is an oxidation-reduction process carried out chemically to liberate iodine in amount equivalent to the quan- tity of dissolved oxygen originally present. 7.4.8, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD). The organic matter present in water can be measured in a number of ways 5 volatile solids determination being a crude measure of organic matter. Organic matter is most often assessed in terms of oxygen required to completely oxidise the organic matter to CO, H,0 and other oxidised species. : The oxygen required to oxidise the organic matter pres a given waste water can be theoretically computed, if CF bis nies present in waste water are known. Thus, if the chemica ie and the concentrations of the chemical compounds Fear en are known to us, we can easily caleulate the Lave reaction demand of each of these compounds by writing the balsouuess Na¥O Yalm pauueDs a) or ge = 106.67 * # — 3 of O- nie ma 3 . / . als 10° re orga! tter present in water 1 a for the illi , Ans. -ation of 1 milli-moles Seat nt the structure of the ts of the elements con- ‘The chemical formul thus becomes : Caso + His A Obviously, this f : pi ‘matter but only the re tained in it, ; er 7.4.10. Bio-Chemical OXyE! See ea infact, is of two types phe. lled biologica (ie. oxidised by bacteria) and is ca Fee aanot be oxi Ty degradable ; and (i) that whien ¢ pe oxidiset io testing & ox ie called biologically inactive. ‘Truely sp , i i he amount of inly i ted in finding out t! waste water, we are mainly intereste atin it eros, the a nologically active organic matter presen © , 1 COD testgives us the total of biologically active as well as Biolagiset ly inactive organic matter. Hence, further testing is carried ou determine the biochemical oxygen demand (B.O.D.) of sewage, chick directly gives us the amount of biologically active organic matter present in sewage. BOD test constitutes the most important test for waste waters, and is discussed below: If sufficient oxygen is available in waste water, the useful aerobic bacteria will flourish and cause the aerobic biological decomposition of wastewater, which willcontinue until oxidation is completed. The eee of onygen consumed in this process is the BOD. Polluted vaters will continue to ab: : it i not practically feasible pao ray, once on ' , ne this ultimate oxygen demand. ence, the BOD of water during 5 da eC; ys at 20°C is generally taken as the standard demand, and j : y sab 10 day BOD is about 90H" gis aout 68% of the total demand. A total, This standard 5 day BOD, determined in the laborato nt nd (B.O.D). The organic his piologically oxidised ly active or biologi- dised biologically, » Written as Bop, ry by mixing or ail > Or Simply as BOD is uting a known volumesouuess Na¥O Yalm pauueDs a) QUALITY AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SEWAGE, 197 of a sample of wastewater w ith a known volume of aerat: and then calculating the D.O, of this diluted sam| iL ubated for 5 days at 20°C. The D.O. of the diluted sample, after this period of incubation, is again ealealatet The difference between the initial D.O. value and the final DO. value will indicate the oxygen consumed by the sewage sample in days (used in causing aerobi ( ic decomposition of wastes).'The BOD in ppm is then calculated by using the equation BOD or BOD; 2d pure = D.O. corisumed in the test by the diluted sample Vol. of the diluted sample Vol. of the undiluted sewage sample (TAD) The factor onthe right hand side in the above equation is nothing but the dilution factor. Say for example, 1% diluted sample means : 1 ml of sewage is diluted to make 100 ml of test sample ; and hence dilution factor would be 100, as 1 ml has been diluted by 100 times to make 100 ml. Hence, the multiplying factor of the right hand side would be 100. In actual experimentation in the laboratory, we generally use 300 ml sized BOD test bottles. The given vol. of sample, say 4 ml is then placed in the bottle, and mixed with pure aerated water to make 300 ml diluted sample. This sample is incubated at 20°C for 5 days. Light must be excluded from the incubator to prevent algal growth that may produce oxygen in the bottle. The DO content before the incuba- tion and after the incubation are thus determined. The BOD; of sewage would then be calculated easily as, 300 BOD; = DO consumed by the diluted sample x (=) . 300 ( +. Dilution factor being] As pointed out earlier, this test is conducted to ae es oxygen demand for the first five days on a number of samp! cee their average value is taken as the BOD; at the test temper ie In fact, if the oxygen supply is made available for a a aa than 5 days, it is found that the oxygen is cone are sr e0- 7 days, and then slows down until the end of about ftrient : 7 ind other nut *, however, contains a small amount of sodium bicarbonate # salts and having a pH value of 7 to 7.6.QUALITY AND CHARACTER ISticg OF sEwa GE ing Fi 203 By comparing Figs. 7.5 and 75 ; ig. 7.5 is nothing but the s/t can be see ‘ig N that . aed the oxygen used in ciPPOeal of « a the curve of 5 . e in Fj a in alas ig. 7.3. Ty amount of organic matt, Satistving BOD j his is curve of Fig. 7.3. era : is in direct ratio of th ised, which Means reciprocal of the stage, which follows the carbonaec * -9 Tepresents the nitrification for the complete oxidation is represented ee ose BeBOD carve Note. The equations given i hs ven above are only for the i i stage BOD, and have nothing to do with the second stage BOD, with which we are not concerned here. . um The Eee. (7.16), (7.17) and (7.18) make it Possible to convert the test results from different time periods and temperatures to the standard 5-day 20°C test or vice versa, as shown in examples solved below : Values of 5-days 20° vary between 100 and C BOD of municipal wastewaters generally 500 mg/l, as shown in Table 7.3. Table 7.3. Typical characteristics of Dometic Sewage in mg/l Ss. Parameter} Strength of Sewage te ic No. characteristic fe aes 1. | Total suspensed solids (SS) 100 200 350 2. | Volatile suspended solids 5 135 210 3. |BOD 100 200 400 4. | COD 175 300 600 5. | TOC* 100 200 400 : 10 20 6, | Ammonia-N 5 “i ia 7. | Organic-N ; i. 0 8. | PO.P raw sewage has been diluted to 250 ml pr eb. Bae of the luted sample at i eT Ei the BOD test was 8 mg/l, and 5 mg/l after Belay incon find the BOD of raw sewage. (AM.LE. Solution. Volume of sample of sewage = 2.5 ml. Volume of diluted sample 7 mil. (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerDISPOSING OF THE SEWAGE EFFLUENTS 231 Table 8.2. BIS (ISI) Standards for Di Sewage and Industrial Effluents in. ‘Saaree Water Sources* and Public Sewers” Tolerance lim for Teanga fe s. Characteristic of Sewage discharged into No. the Effluent Effluent discharged | Inland surface | Public sewers ioe oes waters, as as per later Sour- per = ces, as per | 18 2490-1974 eaeene IS 4764-1973 @ @ @ @ ® 1. | BODs 20 es 2. | cop ae ee lees 3. | pH value ; - 5.5 t09.0 5.5 to 9.0 4, Tal Suspended Solids} 30 mg/l 100 mg/l 600 mg/l 5. | Temperature = 40°C 45°C 6. | Oiland grease a 10 mg/l 100 mg/l 7. | Phenolic compounds = mg/l 5 mg/l (as Phenol) 8. | Cyanides (as CN) = 0.2 mg 2mell 9. | Sulphides (as S) = 2 mgi = 10. | Fluorides (as F) - 2 mg/l _ 11. | Total residual chlorine = Imgl - 12, | Insecticides = Zero = 13, | Arsenic (as As) = 0.2 mg - 14. | Cadmium (as Cd) - 2 mg/l - 15. | Chromium, hexavalent - 0.1 mg/l 2mgl (as Cx) 16. | Copper 7 3 mel emer 17. | Lead - 0.1 mgl anes 18. | Mercury - 0.01 mg/l — 19. | Nickel = 3 mel ce 20, | Selenium - 0.05 ang/t ; 21. | Zine _ 5 mel ee 22. | Chlorides (as Cl) = = coe 23. | % Sodium _ — bei 24. | Ammoniacal nitrogen - 50 mg! om (as N) 25. | Radioactive meterials - 4 = @ a-emitters 19" uC! (micro curiefm) | Gi) emitters oP pcm) | Reservoirs. “Includes Rivers, Estuaries, Streams, Lakes and i (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerSEW. 232 -al qable 8:3- Genew mm pollutants Publ ‘AGE DISPOSA fo! standards | Seauents into LAND: AIR: POPP LON ENGINEER iy, G r Discharge of Environment Surface Water Sources, jne Coasts Under lic eter: (protection) Rules, 1986 me Enviro a a ribed under Environment (Protection Presc Fa] characteristic of Standard Rules, 1986 of GOI for a ; went i.e. i i a theta Fand surface | Publicsewers | Marine coast pollutant in waters Le. seas and pln oceans a (4) (5) @ (2) fforts | All | «| efforts | All efforts efforts 1, | Colour and odour el 4 be made | should be made | should be made to remove | to remove colour | to remove colour colours and un-| and unpleasant | and unpleasnt pleasant odours, | odours as for as | odours as far ag aoras possible | possible. possible. 2 |Total suspended | 100 mg/l 600 me (0 100 mg for solids (TSS) ee water (ii) For cooling water effluent, 10% above total suspended mat- ter of influent 3. | Particle size of| Shall i a sieve max 3 mm . 30 mg 350 mg/l - 5. |cop 2 a 50 mg/l _ _ . | pH value 5.59. alta 0 5.59.0 5.59.00 ure Shall not exceed - Shall not exceed 5°C above. the temp. of receiv- ing water. Total —_residua} es eee chlorine ~ 1.0 mg/l bo gd (@ scanned with OKEN Scanner| (b) Beta emitters DISPOSING OF THE SEWAGE EFFLUENTS a3 a (2) (a) (4) 6) 10, | Ammonical 50 mg/l 50 mg 50 mg/l Nitrogen (as N) L 1L Total Kjeldahl 100 mg — nitrogen [as N] 100 mg/l 12. | Free Ammonia [as 5.0 mg _ Nol 5.0 mg Ja. | Phenolic com-| ‘1.0 mgt 5.0 pounds as ee 5.0 mel CofisOH 14, | Sulphide [as S} 2.0 mg _ cone 15. | Aresenic (as As) 0.2 meh 0.2 mpl o2mgh 16. | Mercury (as Hg) 0.01 mg 0.01 mg/l 0.01 mgt 17. | Lead (as Pb) y 1.0 mg 20 mgl 18, | Cadmium (as Cd) 2.0 mpl 10 mg 2.0 mpl 19. | Hexavalent Oimgi | 20mg 1.0 mg Chromium (as Cr+6) 20. | Total chromium} — 2.0. mg/l 2.0 mel 2.0 mg/l (as Cr) 21. | Copper (as Cu) 3.0 mg/l 3.0 mg/l 3.0 mg/l 22, | Zine (as Zn) 5.0 mg/l 15 mg/l 15 mg/l 93, | Selenium (as Se) 0.05 me 0.05 mg/l 0.05 mg/l 24, | Nickel (as Ni) 3.0 mg/l 3.0 mg/l 5.0 mgfl 25, | Cyanide (as CN) 0.2 mg/l 2.0 mg/l 0.2 mg/l 26. | Fluoride (as F) 2.0 mg/l 15 mg/l 15 mg/l 27. | Dissolved _ phos- 5.0 mg/l = - phates (as P) | | 28, | Radioactive 107 micro- 1077 micro- ae || materials curie/ml curie/ml cope | (a) Alpha emitters | 10° micro- 1076 micro: | 1 ml curie/ml —— (@ scanned with OKEN Scanner~~ | ; p —~— J oom survival of | 90% surviyay 0% aurival of Pan after 96 hra | fish afer val fish afer in 100% eMluent | in 100% cto ip 100m emtuent | Be ee aus oa r amp! 2 mpl mp | : ~ ~~ g mel | | 0.2m 0.2 mg/l 10 mg! "Ben - 10nen | | Pe ese 10 ye! | pesachorde | ag a - |G Carboxyl ae = 201 | Gi) DDT ao a suet | Gp) Bndosulfan Hi a jot |p) Diamethoate} 450 ne/l a sone | (ei) Penitrothion 10 pe 108 | | (oii) Malathion 10 pel _ 108 a | (viii) Phorate 10 yg! _ wel | | (x) Methyl 10 pg 3 10neA | Parathion | (z) Phenthoate 10 pg _ 10net | G2) Pyrethrums 10 yg a ae | aes 9600 ne" a 9600 ugh | | oxychloride | (ait) Copper 50 mg/l _ om | sulphate | iv) Ziram 1000 mg _ soda | (z») Sulphur 30 mg = O00 || Gui Paraouat 2300 mg/l 7 net | et Pron 7300 mg/l = ae) ——— 780 mg/l ae 780 wl | 8.3. Diluti When sage PP every Self Purification of Natural Streams ing water gets valluter into anatural body of water, the receiv- effluents. But the conditi Ne to waste products, present in sewage natural fores offpirificatinn” do not remain go for ever, because the tion-reduction in "10, Such as dilution, sedimentation, oxida-_ tuction in sun-light ete, go on vie dimen ee water into j original condition. This due course, is called the 5 (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerDISPOSING OF THE SEWAGE PFLUENTS: 235 achieved successfully cither due to too much of pollution discharged intoit or due to other causes, the river water itself will get polluted, which, in turn,‘ may also pollute the sea where the river outfalls. ‘The various natural forces of purification which help in effecting self-purification process are summarised below : 1, Physical forces are : (i) Dilution and dispersion, (ii) Sedimentation, (iii) Sunlight (acts through bio-chemical reactions). 2. Chemical forces aided by biological forces (called bio chemical forces) are : (iv) Oxidation (Bio), (v) Reduction. These forces are described below : @ Dilution and Dispersion. When the putrescible organic matter is discharged into a large volume of water contained in the river-stream, it gets rapidly dispersed and diluted. The action, thus, results in diminishing the concentration of organic matter, and thus reduces the potential nuisance of sewage. When sewage of concentration Cg flows at a rate Qs in to a river stream with concentration C, flowing at arate Qp, the concentration C of the resulting mixture is given by CsQs + CrQez = C(Qs + Qn) C= CsQs + CrQr (a1) *r “~Qst@r — This equation is applicable separately to concentrations of dif ferent impurities, such as, oxygen content, BOD, suspended sedi- ments, and other characteristic contents of sewage. (ii) Sedimentation. The settleable solids, if present in sere effluents, will settle down into the bed of the river, near the outfall of sewage, thus, helping in the self purification process. (iii) Sun-light. The sun light has 1a Meshing and tabi ia. It also helps certain micro-organis™=— oe rele and convert themselves into food oe forms © life; thus absorbing carbon dioxide releasing —m vier water inown ds photo synthesis. The evolution of O76 rough die to sunlight will help in achieving self-p oxidation, as given below : yy a process (@ scanned with OKEN Scannerqposal AND AIR POLLUTION ENGINEERING SEWAGE DI . 236 «on of the organic ee in ; ewage outfalls into iy) Oxidation. 4 as soon aS eee ney of o: fe a uents, will Star” Ts oxygen. The deficiency of oxygen so ee e ing di a qimospheric omen The Ge ot riv , ny. i itter has been completely be fil anic mal reated, will EIN the organic n : re ation will continue : important action responsible for effecting an is is the mo oxidised. This iS self purification eee occurs due to eae organic w) Reduction. Re bottom either chemically or biologically. matter settled at t an help in splitting the complex organic con. i ia wil ‘4 ae eae into liquids and ae and thus paving the way aaa lization by oxidation. i ‘tion by / / Sree Le m which these natural forces of purification The various as 5 (c) hy ae 'y such depend aFe =(@. : iver-stream ; (d) available as the velocity and surface expanse penis of organs’ thattes dissolved oxygen, and the a eee Sees ae alata and sedimentation rates, the tem- perature also affects the rate of biological and chemical activities, which are enhanced at higher temperatures and depressed at lower temperatures. The dissolved oxygen content of water, which is very essential for maintaining aquatic life and aerobic conditions (so as to avoid the anaerobic decomposition and subsequent nuisance) is also influenced by temperature. At higher temperatures, the capacity tomaintain the D.O. concentration is low swhile the rate of biological and chemical activities are high, causing thereby rapid depletion of D.O. Thisis likely tolead to anaerobic conditions, when the pollution due to putrescible organic matter is heavy. The turbulence in the body of i akin, of the stream or lake, aut h a ae foes te e @ helps in rapid re-aeration from the atmosphere. Thus, it helps in maintaining aerobic conditions in the however, ot deeaseeing it clear. Too much of turbulence, i B ae » Decause it scours i increases the turbidity, ang Tetards algae gry the sare Shea tm reaeration process, Wi Process, Wind.an, lercurrents in |] ; cause turbulences which affect the; in lakes and oceans “ Self-purificatio ee an the velocity and ree se of the er stream. High vel locities cause turbule expanse of while large surface expanse (for ‘nce and rapid reaeration, the have the same effects “ame cubie contents) will also (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerDISPOSING OF THE SEWAGE EFFLUENTS 237 The larger the amount of dissolved oxygen present in water, the better and earlier the self-purification will occur. The amount and the type of organic matter and biological growth Present in water will also affect the rate of self-purification. Algae which absorbs carbon dioxide and gives out oxygen, is thus, very helpful in the self-purification process. The rate of reaeration i.e. the rate at which the D.O. deficiency is replenished, will considerably govern the self-purification process. The greater is this rate, the quicker will be the self-purification, and there will be no chances of development of anaerobic conditions. 8.3.1. Zones of Pollution in a River-Stream. A polluted stream undergoing self-purification can be divided into the following four zones : (i) Zone of degradation ; (ii) Zone of active decomposition ; (iii) Zone of recovery ; and_ (iv) Zone of cleaner water. These zones are discussed below : @ Zone of degradation or Zone of pollution. This zone is found for a certain length just below the point where sewage is discharged into the river-stream. This zone is characterised by water becoming ark-and turbid with formation of sludge deposits at the bottom. : is reduced to about 40% of the saturation value*. There is an increase in carbon dioxide content ; reoxygenation (i.e. re-aeration) occurs but is slower than de-oxygenation. These conditions are unfavourable to the development of aquatic life ; and as such, algae dies out, but fish life may be present feeding on fresh organic matter. Moreover, certain typical bottom worms such as Limondrilus and Tubifex appear with sewage fungi, such as sphaerotilusnatans. (ii) Zone of active decomposition. This zone is marked by heavy pollution. It is characterised by water becoming greyish and darker than in the previous zone. D.O. concentration falls down to zero, and anaerobic conditions may set in with the evolution of gases ihe methane, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, etc., bubbling e fa surface, with masses of sludge forming an ugly scum oaticitint surface. As the organic decomposition slackens due to stal a of organic matter, the re-aeration sets in and D.O. again "1s original level (i.e. about 40%). In this zone, bacteria flora will flourish. ae ba EA a eae anaerobic bacteria will replace aerobic bacteria, Wht'e ieee "Saturation value at 30°C = 7.6 mg. (PI. see standard tables given a ofthe hank) ( scanned with OKEN ScannerAGE DISPOSAL AND AIR POLLUTION ENGINEERING SEWAGE DISPOS 238 Lero% Physical | Clearwater, | Floating Darker and | Turbid wit : | Flos kt with | Clea Indices nobottom ” | solids; bottom | greyish bottom with no ige,no | sludge colour, evolu- | sludge bottor colour present, tion of gases siudge colour getting | like CH,COz * turbid HS ete. lot of sludge coming to the surface forming an sly scum : layer at top Fish Ordina: Ordinary fish | Tolerant Presence Ne e ai eame, fishes like Picea Tolerant fish | Ordinary fish Pat food & | car, bua, likecarp, buff | like game, preette: | gary ote, alo,ete.are | pan, food, [present Present and forage, ——| ete, present 10 | & S Af s d iF (wi Fig. 8.1. Showing Zones orp; log ‘ution along a Ri ser pillereenees. (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerDISPOSING OF THE SEWAGE EFFLUENTS 239 be minerali i 3 2 5 bes lised to form nitrates, sulphates, phosphates, carbon ates, (iv) Zone of cleaner water. In this zone, the original conditions with D.O. rising up to the Water becomes attractive in appearance, and requires atleast 4 to 5 mg/l of D.O.) and usual a Same pathogenic organisms may still, however, present, which confirms the fact that “when on; been polluted, it will not be safe to drink it, treated.” 8.3.2. Indices of Self-Purification. The stage of self-purification process can be determined by the physical, chemical and biological analysis of the water. Colour and turbidity are the physical indices, while D.O., B.O.D. and suspended solids are the chemical indices which can mark the stages of purification. Moreover, the biological growth present in water can also indicate the stage of purification process, as different types of micro and macro organisms will exist in polluted water under different conditions, as discussed in the previous sub article. The different zones of pollution (i.e. various stages in the self- purification process) and the physical, chemical and biological in- dices, characteristics of each zone, are shown in Fig. 8.1. 8.3.3. The Oxygen Deficit of a Polluted River-Stream. The oxygen deficit D at any time in a polluted river-stream is the difference between the actual D.O. content of water at that time and the saturation D.O. content* at the water temperature ; i.e. [ Oxygen deficit (D) = Saturation D.O. — Actual po| --(8.2) iver attains its Saturation value. Game fish (which quatic life prevails survive and remain ce a river water has unless it is properly In order to maintain clean conditions in a river-stream, the oxygen deficit must be nil, and this can be found out by knowing the rates of de-oxygenation and re-oxygenation. ' De-oxygenation Curve. In a polluted stream, the D.0. on goes on reducing due to decomposition of volatile Se a The rate of de-oxygenation depends upon the amount i eralles matter remaining to be oxidised at the given time ee es ana on the temperature of reaction (i.e. T). Hence, ata a deoxygene- ture, the curve showing depletion of D.O. with oe the first stage tion curve (Refer curve 1 of Fig. 8.2) is similar oe 4d mathemati- B.O.D. curve (Refer Fig. 7.3). It can also be exp’ ee i nresent in' (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerAND AIR POLLUTION ENGINEERING L sewace DISPOSN or o) det oxygen $89 CUIVE OF OnYGeN deficit cy, 240 Lp cue Me eeTual 0.0 content oxy Ges Dalande) < Max ot ertica afte 0-0 i> J lI=reoxygenation 0 —— \/"eurveliie 0.0. content ny foo e ppiled ical etal 1 | _Curve I= Deoxygenation ve or curve showing V" “Geptetion of D.0.in the absence of aeration xc ime of flow(t days}from point of pollution Fig. 8.2 balance th, e. Inorder to counter-balance the consump. en tie aioe conic Nc emoaphers supplies oxygen to tion hai ‘and the process is called re-oxygenation. The rate at which the oxygen is supplied by the atmosphere to the polluted ds upon : . : Gp che depth of the reosiving water (rate is more in a shallow depth) ; ti) the condition of the body of water (rate is more in a running stream than in a quiescent pond) ; (Gi) the saturation deficit or the oxygen deficit (i.e. the deficit of D.O. below the saturation value) ; and (iv) the temperature of water. Depending upon these factors, the rate ofre-oxygenation can also be expressed mathematically and plotted in Oxygen Deficit Curve, In a running px ; olluted sti sed to the atmosphere, the de-oxygenation net sehen 5 as well as the re-oxygenation go hand in hand. If de-oxygenation ig more rapid than the Te- oxygenation, an oxygen deficit result, 8. ntent becom, no longer be maintained and putre: The amount of resultant OXY pr . : gebraically adding the de-onygenntion oa be oblaltied byal (see curve III—Fig. 8.2). The Tesultant curve Sbtaiied f a led the oxygen sag curve or the OxYBen deficit aoe one ical the oxygen deficit and oxygen balance (jg s7ve" From this curve, stream after a certain lapse of time, a imi per cent in a out. es Zero, aerobic conditions will faction will set in.) (@ scanned with OKEN Scanner416 SEWAGE DISPOSAL AND’ AIR POLLUTION ENGINE Rigg SECONDARY TREATMENT THROUGH ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS (Aerobic Suspended Culture) 9.32. Definition of Activated Sludge Process ivated sludge process provides an excellent method of ing either raw soWage or more generally the settled sewage “the sewage eflluent from primary sedimentation tank, which is, thu: normally utilised in this process, is mixed with 20 to 30 per cent of own volume of activated sludge, which contains a large concentra- tion of highly active aerobic micro-organisms. The mixture enters an aeration tank, where the micro-organisms (coated around the sludge solids) and the sewage, are intimately mixed together, with a large quantity of air for about 4 to 8 hours. Under these conditions the moving* organisms will oxidise the organic matter, and the suspended and colloidal matter tend to coagulate and form « precipitate, which settles down readily in the secondary settling tank. The settled sludge (containing micro organisms) called ac. tivated sludge, is then recycled to the head of the aeration tank, to be mixed again with the sewage being treated. New activated sludge is continuously being produced by this process, and a portion of it being utilised and sent back to the aeration tank, whereas the excess portion is disposed of properly along with the sludge collected during primary treatment, after digestion. The effluent obtained from a properly operated activated sludge plant is of high quality, usually having a lower BOD than that of a trickling filter plant. BOD removal is up to 80-—95 per cent, and bacteria removal is up to 90—95 percent. Moreover, land area required is also quite less. But, however, in this process, a rather close degree of control is necessary in operation to ensure (i) that an ample supply of oxygen is present ; (ii) that there is intimate and continuous mixing of the sewage and the activated sludge ; and (iii) that the ratio of the volume of activated sludge added to the volume of sewage being treated is kept practically constant. Moreover, there is the problem of obtaining activated sludge, at the start of a new plant. Hence, when a new plant is put into operation, a period of about 4 weeks may be required to form a suitable return sludge, and during this period, almost all the sludge from the secondary sedimentation tank will be returned through the aeration tank A new plant may also sometimes be seeded with the activated sludge from another plant, s0.as to quickly start the ‘process in the new plant. 9.33, Various Operations and Units of an Activated Sludge Plant 9.33.1. Primary Treatment Units of an Activated Sludge Plant. A typical flow diagram for a conventional activated sludge he organisms coated around the sludge solids are kept moving by agit (@ scanned with OKEN ScannerMENT OF SEWAGE jant is shown. in Fig. 9.36. As pointed “ pe larger solid: : out earli git and laree s by screening in grit change the removal of ers and primary oa GE yy seusst eres] Lilacs FRET | ea eee ps tation wa) 7] "A EL U0 Neh ie ig. 9.36. Flow di: eB Re. plant gieiag ee rntional Activated sludge sedimentation tanks is generally considered Hea simu The pre-removal of these settleable solids ishelpbl eee ing deposits on aeration devices, and thereby ae Agee ee efficiencies. Moreover, such materials, if not pre- educing their settle down in the aeration tank, and by decomposition i may with the cee process. Accordingly, grit removal, renin rimary sedimentation are consi eat 7 ae cotivoted sludge process. msidered necessary for a conven- Since, in this process, it is very much desirable to keep the sewage as fresh as possible, a somewhat shorter detention period is provided in the primary sedimentation tanks than is required for most other treatment processes. This period of primary detention may vary with the size of the plant and the characteristics of sewage, but tank size will generally provide an overflow rate of about 40,000 litres per sq-m of plan area per day. For a depth of about 2.4 m, the detention time will be about 1.4 hours. 9.33.2. Aeration Tanks of an Activated Sludge Plant. From the primary sedimentation tank, the sewage flows to the aeration tank, and is mixed with the activated sludge. The aeration tanks (or aeration chambers, as they are sometimes called) are normally rectangular tanks, 3 to 4.5 m deep, and about 4 to 6 m wide. The length may range between 20 to 200 m, and the detention perio’ between 4 to 8 hours for municipal sewages. Air is continuously introduced into these tanks. f _ Methods of Aeration. There are two basic methods © air into the aeration tanks, i.e. (1) Diffused air aeration or Air diffusion ; and (2) Mechanical aeration gjsobeus (3) Sometimes, a combination ofboth maY : then be called as combined aeration 4 introducing ed which may (@ scanned with OKEN Scannerent OF SEWAGE ™ 339 . jekling Filters for Biological Filteratio 923 Tr ntional trickling filters and their im rs conven rickling filters are now almost Seep soe *Eeondary treatment to sewage. These fitere eee 5 tin filters oF sprinkling filters, consist Srneees or Pegi08 "é Jdia, over which the sewage is allowed to s inkle ot filter gown, by means of spray nozzles or rotary distributor The ie ring sowaee He collected at the bottom of the tank throt a ef ae signed under-drainagesystem. The purification of the — . aght about mainly by the aerobie bacteria, which forma aerial film around the particles of the filtering media. The action bara the Mechanical straining of the filter bed is much less. In to ensure the large seale growth of the aerobic bacteria, sent quantity of oxygen is supplied by providing suitable ven- vt dities in the body of the filter ; and also to some extent intermittent functioning of the filter. * nt obtained from the filter must be taken to the secon- emntation tank for settling out the organic matter ie filter, The sewage influententering aiiet be given pre-treatments including screening and primary sedimentation. 9.211 Construction and Operation of Trickling Filters. trickling filter tanks are generally constructed above the ground. They may either be rectangular or more generally circular (Refer Fig 9.18 (a) and (6)]- Rectangular filters are provided with a net- gorkofpipes having fixed nozzles, which spray the incoming sewage ‘tothe air, which then falls over the bed of the filter, under gravity. Thecireular filter tanks on the other hand, are provided with rotary ficributors having 2 number of distributing arms (generally four ‘teed), These distributors rotate around & central support or more generally by the force ofreaction onthe sprays. Such self-propelled reaction type of distributors (Fis: used. The rate of revolutions 9.19) are now-a-days preferre d and vary from 2 RPM for small distributors to less th an} RPM for large ihtributors. The advantage of ha e arms is not only fee action sufficient to rotate the ‘anism but is als° sittns the fluctuating demands by tal i ae of highs remaining two arms coming into operation only a ane tthe? flows, The distributing arms should remain sbott We the top surface of the filtering media” the tan ey arms are cither by an electric motor, ving two or mor entire mech king low flows 17 (@ scanned with OKEN Scannertise : RRERGS 3 BEEF sienome oosin cI SERES SING TANK RECEIVING SE FE 8 SEWAGE row peistnny TENG, oy REVOLVING = 8 8 a & AIR PIPE (Oem diay HEAD ROTARY DISTRIBUTION ss ee ae eR gee ie aeace 52S 2S waee. 5 z58E Begs & ge =a & uoney 7 . a Ss es S COMBED oF n =e a ‘NOZZLES IN DISTRIBUTARY é e28 g WALL : ¥ ARMS (10 tolZem cia) g reoee z z eRyee z fess INeCuENT é sok Fs . . Beez HTL 3 SSE E \uvoee-oang,c.os E ER EG® THE PERIPHERY = SEE a8 J-—ceNTRaL’ £ $5 as Ey COLUMN = sh EEE 2 TSG ES BETES 2 BSE S Fie 818 i typient sation of n conventional Circular Tvckine iter es Teotary distributors (wortcal seule she - ‘© Scanned with OKEN Scanner