Aerobic treatment plays a vital role in wastewater management. This process treats the wastewater using aerobic microbes in a controlled manner. It is an economical and effective way of removing contaminants from wastewater. Apart from that, aerobic treatment is heavily used in food and beverage, chemical manufacturing, oil and gas, and municipal industries due to its effectiveness and scalability in treating wastewater.
In this comprehensive guide, we are going to learn aerobic treatment for wastewater with its basic definition, types, working, and benefits of aerobic treatment, and something more in the meantime.
A] What Is Aerobic Wastewater Treatment?
Aerobic wastewater treatment is a process of treating wastewater using the oxygenated microorganism. It is the contrary process of anaerobic wastewater treatment. This process involves the degradation of pollutants dissolved in the contaminated water. The oxygenated microorganisms known as aerobic microbes, break the micropollutants using a specific enzyme in the simpler and less harmful matter.
B] Types Of Aerobic Treatment Systems
1. Activated Sludge Process
In this process, highly concentrated aerobic microorganisms are used to degrade the pollutants. It consists of three components, an aeration tank that serves as a bioreactor, a setting tank that serves as a final clarifier to separate sludge solids, and a return activated sludge equipment to transfer sludge from the setting tank. In this process, activated sludge and wastewater are thoroughly mixed to remove the nutrients and obtain high-quality effluent.
2. Biological Trickling Filter Systems
In this aerobic water treatment, trickling vessels are filled with solid materials like gravel, rock, ceramics, and plastics. A rotating effluent distributor sprinkles the wastewater over the fixed pebble bed. A continuous flow of water develops the slime layer of aerobic microbes on the solid materials. These layer of biofilms settles the micropollutants and make the water reusable. This process is widely used in treating municipal and industrial wastewater.
3. Sequential Batch Reactors (SBRs)
Sequential Batch Reactors (SBRs) are a type of aerobic treatment system that operates in a batch mode, meaning that all treatment processes like filling, aeration, settling, and decanting, occur sequentially within the same reactor tank. It is a suitable process for variable effluent flows and wastewater pollutants load. This advanced aerobic water treatment process efficiently removes organic pollutants, nutrients, and pathogens.
4. Membrane Bioreactors (MBRs)
In this aerobic treatment, microfiltration and ultrafiltration membranes are used with the bioreactors to separate the solid and liquid contents of wastewater. Membranes retain the microbes like bacteria and protozoa while releasing the effluent into nature. Membrane bioreactors can remove more suspended solids compared to the activated sludge process.
5. Moving Bed Bioreactor
Moving Bed Bioreactors (MBBRs) are advanced biological treatment systems used in wastewater treatment plants. It contains aeration tanks filled with a plastic carrier that has bio-film-forming microorganisms. Wastewater passes through the biofilms and metabolizes the organic pollutants. This process is widely used in treating municipal and industrial wastewater due to its high filtration capabilities for pollutant removal.
C] How Do Aerobic Wastewater Treatment Systems Work?
1. Aeration
Aeration is the process of dissolving or mixing air into a liquid. Aeration plays a vital role in the aerobic treatment of wastewater. In this secondary treatment process, air is pumped into the tank using a mechanical aeration device such as an air blower or compressor to promote microbial growth. It also promotes the oxidation process to dissolve the organic pollutants by allowing aerobic biodegradation.
2. Breakdown Of Organic Matter
Within the aerated environment, aerobic microorganisms metabolize organic compounds present in the wastewater to harvest energy for their survival and growth. These microorganisms break down complex organic compounds into simpler forms through biochemical reactions such as aerobic respiration. This breakdown process reduces the concentration of organic pollutants thus effectively treating the wastewater.
3. Removal Of Contaminants
In this aerobic digestion, oxygen is mixed with wastewater to feed the microbes. The oxygenated environment initiates the oxidation process within the waste which breaks the contaminants into simple compounds. Chemical contaminants such as nitrogen and phosphorus are removed through the nitrification and denitrification process, where a specific group of bacteria converts ammonia (NH3) to nitrite (NO2-) and then into nitrate(NO3-). Phosphorus removal is achieved through the consumption of phosphate ions by aerobic microorganisms during their growth and metabolism process.
Want to Learn More About Aerobic Wastewater Treatment Systems? Explore How These Systems Can Benefit Your Wastewater Management!
D] Role Of Aerobic Microorganisms In Wastewater Treatment
Aerobic microorganisms play a vital role in treating wastewater. They degrade the dissolved or solid pollutants by initiating the oxidation process in the oxygenated environment. They are used in breaking down micropollutants and other chemical compounds such as nitrogen and phosphorous.
These aerobic microbes speed up the process of treating water by growing and evolving themself in the oxygenated environment. These aerobic microbes are the backbone of wastewater treatment as they clean the wastewater and avail it for the purpose of reusability.
E] Advantages Of Aerobic Treatment
1. Environmental Benefits
The aerobic treatment uses natural aerobic microbes that remove various contaminants from wastewater. These removal processes clean the wastewater and serve for reuse purposes thus reducing the load on fresh water resources. Treating wastewater through aerobic and anaerobic processes mitigates the chances of polluting essential natural resources.
2. Efficiency And Effectiveness
The Aerobic treatment can effectively handle the fluctuation of wastewater loads as this treatment is designed to provide high-rate wastewater treatment with much higher efficiency and effectiveness. The treatment process is highly effective in treating highly contaminated water in a much faster way since microbes grow their community faster in highly contaminated and oxygenated environments.
3. Versatility And Scalability
The aerobic treatment process is equally versatile and scalable as this process can opt for any level of pollutant wastewater. Since the aerobic treatment process can obtain a high microbial growth rate, they are suitable for scaling the wastewater cleaning process.
Why Choose Purebact For Aerobic Wastewater Treatment?
We, PureBact, as a leading sustainable water treatment solution, have a deep understanding of water treatment challenges. We are equipped with cutting-edge biotechnological advancements that contribute to the accurate identification of your wastewater challenges needs and deliver personalized solutions to your water challenges.
We focus on delivering quality to our valuable customers by offering them a range of highly effective aerobic bioculture products. Our products meet the claimed microbial concentrations with guaranteed cell counts. These high-quality products are highly suitable for aerobic wastewater treatment because of their accurate concentration of aerobic bacteria and help in reducing the BOD/COD of contaminated water while providing a micronutrient boost. Contact us today to resolve your specific wastewater challenges.
Rahul Mehta
Rahul Mehta is the Business Development Manager at Pure Water Enterprises, one of the fastest-growing water & wastewater companies in India. Specializing in wastewater filtration, disinfection, and bioremediation, his expertise has helped him understand the Indian water treatment landscape and position the organization's innovative and eco-friendly solutions in the most efficient way possible.
