Wastewater characteristics

Nidal Mahmoud
Institute of Environmental and Water Studies, Institute of Environmental and Water Studies,,,
Birzeit University Birzeit University
nmahmoud@birzeit.edu
Ecological Sanitation Training Course
SWITCH PROJECT
IEWS, Birzeit University, 25-27 January 2011
Outline Outline
Introduction Introduction
General characteristics
Wastewater parameters Wastewater parameters
Characteristics of domestic sewage
Introduction
Why wastewater characterization y
Wastewater characteristics for a certain community
could change with time depending on technologies
available.
Introduction
Water quality is described by a series of water quality Water quality is described by a series of water quality
parameters
A water quality parameter refers to a property of water A water quality parameter refers to a property of water
(such as color, taste, turbidity) or to the composition of
water.
The composition of water can be expressed in the
concentration of individual compounds or it can be
expressed in the concentration of a group of related expressed in the concentration of a group of related
compounds, such as Biochemical Oxygen Demand
(BOD), these are called lump parameters.
Substances present in water are either in solid, liquid, or
gas form.
Introduction
Water Quality Q y
Parameters
Physical parameters Chemical parameters Microbiological
parameters
TS COD lif TS COD coliform
VS BOD
TSS Nkj-N
pH NH4-N pH NH4 N
Turbidity NO3
conductivity PO4
SO4

Water analysis is essential in:
The design and operation of collection, treatment, and reuse facilities
To asses reactor performance
To comply with standards
others
Main components of wastewater characteristics Main components of wastewater characteristics
A distinction can
also be made also be made
according to
particle size
(important in (important in
water
treatment as
the required the required
treatment
process
d d th depends on the
size of particles
to b e
d l removed; also
in water
treatment).
COD fractions
Raw sewage
Suspended COD
(CODss)
4.4 m paper-filtered sewage
(CODss)
Colloidal COD (CODcol)
0.45 m membrane filtered
sewage
Dissolved COD
(CODdis)
sewage
(CODdis)
Main components of wastewater characteristics Main components of wastewater characteristics
Physical- Chemical
Parameters
Importance
Parameters
________________
1 Temperature
o
C
___________________________________
Affects chemical reactions and reaction
1. Temperature C
rates. Low temperature affects bacterial
growth.
2. pH
Affects chemical biochemical reactions as
well as biological activities.
3. Turbidity Due to presence of colloidal matter. When
high SS concentration present in WW it high SS concentration present in WW, it
could be resistant to removal when
treating under anaerobic conditions.
Main components of wastewater characteristics Main components of wastewater characteristics
Physical- Chemical
Parameters
Importance
_______________
4. Suspended Solids
(SS)
_____________________________
Hydrolysis of suspended solids may be the
rate limiting step under anaerobic
(SS)
rate limiting step under anaerobic
conditions especially at low
temperatures. They also cause
disintegration of granular sludge and disintegration of granular sludge and
results in lower methanogenic activity.
Aff t i ki ti f th d d
5. Particle size
distribution
Affects conversion kinetics of the suspended
solids.
Main components of wastewater characteristics p
Physical- Chemical
Parameters
Importance
________________
6. Polymeric
tit t
___________________________________
They consist mainly of carbohydrates,
proteins and lipids and should be
constituents
(COD)
proteins and lipids and should be
removed with treatment. They constitute
the main part of the COD of wastewater.
7. Refractory organics
These compounds tend to resist
conventional wastewater treatment.
T i l l f t t Typical examples are surfactants,
phenols and agricultural pesticides. The
presence of surfactants also affects
stabilization of colloids and the surface stabilization of colloids and the surface
properties of particles.
Main components of wastewater characteristics
Physical- Chemical Importance y
Parameters
________________
p
___________________________________
Organic and inorganic compounds selected
8. Priority pollutants
Organic and inorganic compounds selected
on the basis of their known or suspected
carcinogenic, high acute toxicity. Many of
these compounds are found in these compounds are found in
wastewater.
Hi h t ti i hibiti f
9. Sulphate
High concentration causes inhibition of
methanogenesis.
10. Chloride
It may have an impact on the final use of
treated wastewater
Main components of wastewater characteristics p
Physical- Chemical
Parameters
Importance
________________
11. Heavy metals
___________________________________
Toxic to bacteria.
I t i t
11. Heavy metals
12 N i
Impact on environment.
12. Nutrients
Macro (N,P,K) and
micronutrients
Important for biological treatment
processes.
13. Biological
Parameters
Includes pathogenic microorganisms, and all
th i ti i ti i
Parameters
other organisms participating in
biological conversions.
Effect of Temperature
Three ranges of temperature
Effect of low temperature: low methanogenic activity;
low hydrolysis rate.
Temperature has also a direct impact on the physical
chemical characteristics of the solids and solution,
including the ability to form a scum layer It also affects including the ability to form a scum layer. It also affects
the solubility of gases.
Effect of pH Effect of pH
Many inhibitory substances for methanogenic bacteria are controlled
by pH. For example, organic acids are inhibitory to methanogenic
b t i l i th i i d f hi h i i l d t i d b bacteria only in the unionized form which is mainly determined by
the pH of the solution.
Optim m pH fo mic oo ganisms g o th Optimum pH for microorganisms growth
pH optimum for hydrolysis of organic polymers
Turbidity of wastewater
Turbidity is an indication of the
clarity of a water
Turbidity is as an optical
property
Light source Light source
property
Presence of colloidal particles.
Slit Slit
Determination of colloidal
fraction
Sample
Phototube
Sample
Phototube
fraction.
Colloidal particles in anaerobic
Schematic diagramof a nephelometer
p
reactor.
Schematic diagram of a nephelometer
Turbidity of wastewater
Measurement
of gas production
Primary
ffl t
From: Mels (2001)
Turbidity measurements are often
used to monitor the performance
of treatment works processes: on
R t
effluent
Turbidity measurement
( )
TSS mg/l TSSfx T
of treatment works processes: on
line measurement
Reactor
with filter material
Clarifier
Primary effluent
Polymer dosing pump
TSS, mg/l TSSfx T
Where,
TSS = total suspended solids,
mg/l
Influent
Coagulation
mixing
Flocculation
mixing
Sludge
discharge
Sludge
discharge
Relation
mg/l
TSSf = factor used to convert
turbidity readings to total
suspended solids, (mg/l
200
250
300
350
D

(
>

0
.
4
5

m
)

between
turbidity
and
ti l t
suspended solids, (mg/l
TSS)/NTU
T = turbidity, NTU
y = 2.46x
R
2
= 0.986
0
50
100
150
P
a
r
t
i
c
u
l
a
t
e

C
O
D
particulate
COD (>
0.45 m) as
found in the 0 25 50 75 100 125 150
NTU
found in the
jar test
experiments
Total SuspendedSolids Total Suspended Solids
Definition: portion of solids retained on the p
Whatman glass fiber filter, which has a
nominal size of about 1.58 m
Determination: Filtration, drying (105 C),
weighing
Problems with the test: sensitive to moisture
Importance of the test: biological and p g
physical processes
Particle Size Distribution
There is no universal agreement on particle size distribution
Type of matter Particle size
Suspended matter > 1 m
There is no universal agreement on particle size distribution
Type of matter Particle size
Suspended matter > 4.4 m
p
Colloidal matter 0.001 1 m
Dissolved (or soluble) <0.001 m

Colloidal matter 0.45 4.4 m
Dissolved (or soluble) <0.45 m

Importance Importance
First step in biodegradation
process
Treatment method Treatment method
Sulphate concentration
Sulphate reducing bacteria are able to oxidize part of the COD
present in the wastewater by utilizing sulphate as an electron
acceptor. acceptor.
When sulphate concentration is high, then sulphate reducing
bacteria will compete methanogenic bacteria and little CH4 is bacteria will compete methanogenic bacteria and little CH4 is
produced.
f Sulphate reducing bacteria grow at a wide range of pH (5-9).
Sulphate reduction can not be controlled in anaerobic reactor except
when the SO4- concentration is limited. Fortunately, in domestic
l h t t ti i ll l f l 50 sewage, sulphate concentration is generally low, for example, 50-
200 mg/l.
Polymeric Constituents Polymeric Constituents
For domestic sewage, the percentage of each polymer may be
different from one community to another depending on the lifestyle
and standards of living of a society.
Composition affects the biodegradation process as some polymers,
for example, carbohydrates are more readily biodegradable than for example, carbohydrates are more readily biodegradable than
lipids.
Organic pollutants in wastewater can be divided into easily Organic pollutants in wastewater can be divided into easily
biodegradable materials and slowly biodegradable materials.
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)
Theoretical oxygen demand (ThOD). Theoretical oxygen demand (ThOD).
Organic matter: CnHaObNc
CnHaObNc+{n + a/4 b/2 3c/4}O2 nCO2 + {a/2 3c/2}H2O +
cNH3
BOD: defined as the amount of oxygen required to oxidize organic
matter by microorganisms under aerobic conditions. g
Priority Pollutants
The EPA has identified approximately 129 priority pollutants (both
organic and inorganic substances), which are suspected to be
carcinogenic mutagenic or have high toxicity carcinogenic, mutagenic or have high toxicity.
Many of the organic priority pollutants are also classified as volatile
i d h d d di h i i organic compounds. These compounds vary depending on the origin
of wastewater.
Refractory organic compounds
A typical example on refractory organic compounds is surfactants;
or surface active agents or surface active agents.
These are large molecules that are slightly soluble in water and g g y
cause foaming in wastewater treatment plants. They tend to collect
at the air water interface. During aeration of biogas production,
these compounds collect at the surface of gas bubbles causing a these compounds collect at the surface of gas bubbles causing a
very stable foam which difficult to remove.
Composition of domestic sewage for different Composition of domestic sewage for different
countries (Adopted from Mahmoud et al., 2003)
Parameter* Jordan Palestine Egypt The Netherlands Columbia, Cali
CODt 1183 1586 825 528 267
CODss 608 919 225
CODcol 174 274 156 CO co 56
CODdis 401 393 270 147 112
VFA-COD 104-177 160 55
NH4-N 80 80 26 48 17 NH4-N 80 80 26 48 17
Nkj-N 109 104 34 70 24
Total P 13 9 18 1
PO
3
P 13 4 14 PO
4
-3
-P 13 4 14
Lipids-COD 443 302
Protein-COD 272 224
TSS 420 736 310 215
VSS 330 617 277 108
VSS/TSS 79 84 89 50
Temperature 16-24 8-20 25
* All parameters are in mg/l, except for temperature (
o
C), VSS/TSS ratio.
Biodegradability andBiodegradation rate of sewage Biodegradability and Biodegradation rate of sewage
Definition of

O 10% O 10% O %
biodegradability
NaOH 10%
Septum
NaOH 10% NaOH 5%
Septum
Procedure used for
determination
Serumbottle
with ca. 5 g
sludgeCOD
+ 1 ml NaOHsolution = 1 ml of CH4 produced= 25 mg
Serumbottle
with ca. 5 g
sludgeCOD
+ 1 ml NaOHsolution = 1 ml of CH4 produced= 25 mg
Determination of

granular sludge
(1 g VSS)
30 degr.
1 ml NaOHsolution = 1 ml of CH4 produced= 2.5 mg
COD degraded
granular sludge
(1 g VSS)
30C .
1 ml NaOHsolution = 1 ml of CH4 produced= 2.5 mg
COD degraded
biodegradation rates of
different polymers.
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
g
r
a
d
e
d

p
a
r
t
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0 40.0 45.0 50.0
B
i
o
d
e
g
time (days)
Composition of wastewater (polymeric constituents) p (p y )
Average percentages of carbohydrates, lipids and proteins for the
two influents compared to data presented in literature two influents, compared to data presented in literature.
Values in brackets are percentages of TSS
Khirbit As-
Samra
Abu-Nusier McInery,
(1988)
Elmitwalli,
(2001) ( ) ( )
Carbohydrates 5 (21.8) 5 (15) (12.8) 9-17
P i 45 (28) 48 (27 1) 31 58 Proteins 45 (28) 48 (27.1) 31-58
Lipids 23 (34) 31 (39) (34.4) ---
Biodegradability of wastewater Biodegradability of wastewater
Biodegradability of the wastewaters Biodegradability of the wastewaters
Time (day) 130 224
Khi bit A S 56 1 78 4 Khirbit As-Samra 56.1 78.4
Abu-Nusier 75.8 (8.6) ---
Wastewater Characteristics of Ramallah City, Al - Bireh City and Al-
Jalazoon refugee camp
Parameters # Samples Ramallah Al-Bireh Al-Jalazoon
Range AVR STD Range AVR STD Range AVR STD
COD Total 8 1518-3812 2180 663 1411-1844 1586 125 1092-1773 1489 251
Suspended 8 545 1925 1096 456 720-1209 919 157 518-990 725 153
Colloidal 8 107 525 323 101 171 362 274 52 4 213 440 327 71 3 Colloidal 8 107- 525 323 101 171-362 274 52.4 213-440 327 71.3
Dissolved 8 468-1482 761 297 280-464 393 62.3 258-613 438 113
Carboh. Total 5 100-231 178.4 52.6 99-166 131 22.8 59-155 93.5 32.7
Suspended 5 45-90 64.1 20.2 67-132 97.4 25.3 28-88 44.8 21.3
Colloidal 5 10-35 21.6 10 9-14 11.7 1.8 4-14 9.9 3.7
Dissolved 5 37-157 92.6 55.4 17-37 22.2 7.4 15-60 38.8 17.3
VFA as COD 2 175-199 187 12 155-162 160 3.1 100-145 123 25.4
Nkj as N 6 54-119 99.4 23.2 85-122 104 14.7 53-83 71 10
NH
4
+
as N 8 47-72 58 8.5 72-89 80.1 5 40-77 56.2 9.5
+
Proteins 388 224 139
Total PO
4
as P
3 10-15 12.8 2.2 11-14 13 1.5 11-18 15 2.4
PO
4
3-
as P 5 6-17 12.4 3.8 8-15 12.9 2.6 8-14 11.9 2.4
SO
4
2-
as SO
4
2-
4 474-2060 975 742 129-151 138 9.9 143-277 213 57
TSS 5 510-1096 729 197 610-824 736 67 408-1048 630 234
VSS 5 255 892 584 209 492 676 617 66 1 364 733 480 148 VSS 5 255-892 584 209 492-676 617 66.1 364-733 480 148
Settleable solids 7 4-105 43.5 41.1 8.5-13.5 10.9 2.2 1.2-8 2.9 2.4
pH 4 7.18-8.02 7.45 0.39 7.16-7.44 7.26 0.13 7.11-7.58 7.31 0.2
T
ww
Summer 8 26-40 30.9 3.19 24-27 25.8 0.67 20-25 23.4 1.52
Winter 4 12-13 13.13 0.63
T
amb
. Summer 8 21-33 27.1 3.17
Winter 4 11-17 13.8 2.75
Biodegradability 2 46-49 47 1.4 34-40 36 3.2 32-35 33 1.5
Colour 8 Reddish to black Medium brown Light brown

All parameters have been measured in duplicate and their units are in mg/l except settleable solid in ml/l; wastewater temperatures (Tww)
and ambient temperature (Tamb) (o C); pH no unit; Biodegradability (%); Proteins mg COD/l
+Calculated
Percentages of hydrolysis and acidification of total COD and
acidification of dissolved COD and VSS/TSS and CODss/VSS ratios
for the sewage of Ramallah and Al Bireh cities and AL Jalazoon
P t R ll h Al Bi h AL J l
for the sewage of Ramallah and Al-Bireh cities and AL-Jalazoon
refugee camp-Palestine
Parameter Ramallah Al Bireh AL-Jalazoon
Acidified fraction VFA/CODt 10 10 9
Acidified of dissolved VFA/CODdis 27 36 35
H d l d f ti CODdi /CODt 39 28 25 Hydrolysed fraction CODdis/CODt 39 28 25
VSS/TSS 80 84 76
CODss/VSS 1.88 1.49 1.51
P t f b h d t t i d VFA t f t t l COD f Percentages of carbohydrates, proteins and VFA out of total COD for
domestic/municipal wastewater of Ramallah, Al-Bireh cities and AL-
Jalazoon refugee camp-Palestine and Bennekom village-The Netherlands
Parameter Ramallah Al-Bireh AL-Jalazoon Bennekom-The Netherland
Carb-COD/CODt 8.8 8.9 6.7 12
P otein COD/CODt 18 14 9 44 Protein-COD/CODt 18 14 9 44
VFA/CODt 10 10 9 9
Sub total COD 36.8 32.9 24.7 65

Gray wastewater characteristics of 25 houses in Biet-Diko
Item BOD
5
COD pH EC TDS SVI TS TSS Cl
-
HCO
3
-
NH
4
+
NO
3
-
SO
4
2-
PO
4
3-
Ca
2+
Mg
2+
Na
+
K
+
FC
Gray wastewater characteristics of 25 houses in Biet-Diko
and Bilien villages/ Palestine
Unit mg/l mg/l
s/
cm ppm ml/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l mg/l
CFU/
100 ml
value 590 1270 6.6 1585 935 11.4 1780 1396 255 230 3.8 38 74 4.4 75 35 126 16 60