WASTEWATER TREATMENT

AND DISPOSAL

GROUP 8
 WASTEWATER
• Wastewater can be defined as any water that has been used for domestic,
commercial, industrial or agricultural purposes and has become contaminated
as result.

• It may contain a range of pollutants including human and animal waste,

chemicals, pathogens and other substances that can pose risk to human health
and the environment.
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WASTEWATER SOURCES
• Wastewater comes from:
• Homes
• Sinks, showers, toilets,
washing machines,
dishwashers
• Businesses
• Industrial facilities
• Storm runoff
• From roads, parking lots,
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roofs
 WHAT NEEDS TO BE REMOVED?

• Wastewater may contain a variety of substances:

• trash and debris
• human waste
• food scraps
• oils
• grease
• soaps
• chemicals (cleaning, pesticides, industrial) 4
• pharmaceuticals and personal care products
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT
• It is the process of removing physical, chemical, and biological contaminants
from wastewater and household sewage.

• Goal is to separate wastewater into:

 Environmentally-safe fluid waste stream.
 Solid waste to be disposed or reused.

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 PROCESS OF WATER TREATMENT

• Water which enters a water treatment facility undergoes a series of steps to

cleanse the water using physical, chemical, and biological processes

• Upon exiting the water treatment facility, the decontaminated water is

released into rivers or streams, entering again into the environment
• Sometimes used specifically for agriculture and irrigation
• Possible to purify into clean drinking water again

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 STEPS OF THE WASTEWATER
TREATMENT PROCESS
1. Pretreatment
2. Physical or Primary Treatment
3. Biological or Secondary Treatment
4. Chemical or Tertiary Treatment
5. Sludge Processing
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Schematic diagram of wastewater treatment process 8
 TREATMENT PROCESS
STEP 1: PRETREATMENT
• Prepares waste water for entering the treatment plant
• Removal of larger debris by screening (shown right)
• Trash
• Tree limbs

• Removal of grit and gravel by screening and settling

• Gravel must be removed early as it can damage
machinery and equipment in the treatment plant
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 TREATMENT PROCESS
STEP 2: PRIMARY TREATMENT
• In Primary Treatment, as much solid material is removed as possible by
relying on gravity
• Removes most of the sludge and scum
• Sludge: Organic and inorganic materials which will naturally settle
• removed by sedimentation
• Scum: Materials which will float (oil, grease, soap)
• removed by skimming
• This step successfully removes 50 to 70% of suspended solids and up to 65%
of oil and grease
• Colloidal and dissolved materials are not affected by this step
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 TREATMENT PROCESS STEP 3:
SECONDARY TREATMENT
• Secondary treatment is designed to remove residual organic materials and
suspended solids that were not removed during primary treatment

• Works to degrade the biological content of the sewage that comes from
human waste, food waste, soaps and detergent.

• Removal of biodegradable dissolved and colloidal organic matter using

aerobic biological treatment and flocculation 11
 TREATMENT PROCESS
STEP 4: TERTIARY TREATMENT
• Tertiary treatment (also known as advanced treatment) includes the
remaining processes necessary to remove the following from wastewater:
• Nitrogen
• Phosphorus
• additional suspended solids
• remaining organics
• heavy metals
• dissolved solids
• Disinfection: Diseases-causing organisms require one special operation again.
The wastewater must be disinfected for at least 20-25 minutes in tanks that
contain a mixture of chlorine and sodium hypochlorite for elimination to protect
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the health of the animals and people.
 TREATMENT PROCESS
STEP 5: SLUDGE TREATMENT
• Sludge consists of all the solid material removed from wastewater during the
water treatment process
• While the water in treatment is ready for release into streams and groundwater,
sludge requires further treatment before it can be disposed or used
• Must reduce the amount of organic matter
• Must reduce the number of disease causing microbes
• Remove as much remaining liquid as possible
• Sludge treatment options include:
• Aerobic digestion
• Anaerobic digestion
• Composting
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• Incineration
 LIMITATIONS TO TREATMENT PROCESSES

• Cost

• Infrastructure

• Maintenance of facilities and equipment

• By-products disposal

• Energy requirement

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 CONCLUSION
The proper treatment of wastewater is crucial for preserving
the environment, especially with the rise of urbanization and
industrialization. Wastewater treatment is everyone’s
responsibility.

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THANK YOU

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 SOURCES
• Severn Trent Water. “The Water Treatment Process” Online. 9 July 2011.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9z14l51ISwg
• United States Geological Survey. “Wastewater Treatment: Water Use” Online. 9 July 2011.
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/wuww.html
• South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff. “Overview of Basic Wastewater Treatment Process” Online. 9
July 2011. http://www.regulatorystaff.sc.gov/orscontent.asp?pageid=654
• Author Unknown. “Sewage Treatment” Online. 8 July 2011.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sewage_treatment
• United States Geological Survey. “A visit to a wastewater-treatment plant: Primary treatment of
wastewater” Online. 9 July 2011 http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/wwvisit.html
• Natural Resources Management and Environment Department. “Water Treatment” Online. 10 July 2011.
http://www.fao.org/docrep/t0551e/t0551e05.htm
• Environmental Protection Agency. “Water Treatment Process” Online. 8 July 2011.
http://water.epa.gov/learn/kids/drinkingwater/watertreatmentplant_index.cfm
• Environmental Protection Agency. Wastewater Technology Fact Sheet: Ozone Disinfection. (1999)
Online. 11 July 2011 http://water.epa.gov/scitech/wastetech/upload/2002_06_28_mtb_ozon.pdf
• Author Unknown. “Chlorination” Online 11 July 2011.
http://water.me.vccs.edu/courses/ENV149/chlorinationb.htm
• Lenntech Water Treatment Solutions. “Phosphorous removal from wastewater”. Online 10 July 2011.
http://www.lenntech.com/phosphorous-removal.htm#ixzz1RpIsY55O
• Author Unknown. “Flocculation” Online 9 July 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flocculation