Designing for High Strength Wastewater in Commercial Establishments

Ron Suchecki Hoot Systems, LLC Lake Charles, LA

Overview of Presentation
Wastewater Loadings Factors

Hydraulic & Organic

User Impact on the system Variability of Flow for Residential vs.

Commercial How to calculate the quantity of Organic Matter (BOD5) generated Other water flows Indicators of strength

Wastewater Loading
All waste streams have two design values:
Wastewater Quantity

Hydraulic load Wastewater Quality Organic Load

Wastewater Loading
Wastewater Quantity

Hydraulic Loading Residential 100 GPB Commercial - Chart Organic Loading Residential <300 mg/L BOD5 & TSS Oxygen Demand

Waste Quality

WASTEWATER QUANTITY

Daily Flow

Design Actual People served Square Footage Daily - Runoff Period Weekly Seasonal

Flow Estimates

Peak Flows

Distribution of mean household daily per capita indoor water use for 1,188 data-logged homes (EPA 2002: Onsite Wastewater Treatment System Manual)
18%

16%

14%

12% Relative Frequency

10%

8%

6%

4%

2%

0% More 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90

Mean Indoor Gallons Per Capita Per Day

Commercial Flow Estimates

Charts and References Tables or Seats Square footage People Served Other Methods

Cash Flow Transactions

Even with all of that

Do not reply on published design criteria

when repairing an existing system.

DO NOT REPLY ON PUBLISHED

DESIGN CRITERIA WHEN REPAIRING AN EXISTING SYSTEM.

On new Construction look for Comps! Real Flows and Strength are critical

Peak Flows
Estimating Peak Flow

Home 16 Hours Commercial

Hours of Operation From Single Event to 24

Runoff Period
Open Hours + Prep and Cleanup May need to look at hour per hour

Commercial Wastewater
Strength

Usually Greater than Residential If Not, Problem Operation Based Food Prep Restrooms Laundry Etc.

Extra Water
Clear Water

Back flush Condensate Leaky Fixtures Leaky System Components

Groundwater Surface Water Gutters

Too Much Use

WASTEWATER QUALITY
BOD

Biochemical oxygen demand

TSS

Total suspended solids

FOG

Fats, oils & grease

Oxygen States

Dissolved

Free O2 Oxygen that has been incorporated into water Many aquatic animals require it for their survival Attached to other compounds, NO3 Aerobic, Anaerobic, Facultative

Bound

Microbes:

Oxygen Demand

The oxygen demand is the amount of oxygen required to aerobically oxidize a material Organic material Nitrogen Other compounds Water (low DO)

Biochemical Oxygen Demand

Biochemical oxygen demand, or BOD is

the amount of oxygen used during the breakdown of organic material BOD is considered an indirect measure of the organic content of a sample CBOD Carbonaceous Biochemical Oxygen Demand NBOD Nitrogenous Biochemical Oxygen Demand

BOD Analysis
BOD analysis is done under these

conditions:

Must be in the dark Must be at 20C Must have an excess of nutrients

Measurement of DO concentration

Beginning of test After 5 days

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)

COD is the equivalent amount of oxygen

needed to break down organic matter using strong oxidizing agents

Approximation of BOD Faster than BOD Generally somewhat higher than BOD Measure of biological inhibitors -

troubleshooting

FOG
Fats, oil and grease Fats Oils Grease

Fats Oils and Grease

Constituent State at Room Comments Temperature Fats Oils Grease Solid Liquid Solid or liquid Non-toxic to the system, animal fats, scum build-up Non-toxic to the system, vegetable oils, hard to separate Residual material on appliances; petroleum products, moisturizers, bath oils, toxic to the wastewater system

Room temperature assumes 74 degrees F A degreaser will move all components through a system

Collect in septic tank requiring pump out over time May clog distribution areas in poorly-managed systems Interfere with mechanical systems Associated with taste/color/clarity problems in drinking water

Solids

Total Solid (TS)

Total solids of a sample is the matter left

behind after drying a sample of water at 105C.

There are two ways that solid materials

may be classified

Suspended solids and dissolved solids Volatile solids and fixed solids

Suspended & Dissolved Solids

Total suspended solids are the part of the

sample that may be caught with a 1.5 m filter Total dissolved solids are the part of the sample that will pass through the filter

Volatile & Fixed Solids

Total volatile solids is the portion of the

sample lost after the sample has been heated to 550C. It is an approximation of the organic material present Total fixed solids is the portion that still remains after heating. It is an approximation of the mineral matter present

Solids

Nutrients
Problems associated with excess nutrients: Increases productivity of aquatic plants, leading to low DO May cause odor problems Extra vegetation near surface may inhibit light penetration Nutrients: Nitrogen, Phosphorous, Potassium

Salts
Problems associated with excess salt: High salt concentrations detrimental to plant growth and can damage crops Salt can damage equipment, especially some materials which react with the salts

Turbidity
Turbidity is a measure of the clarity of

water. Turbidity is influenced by the number of insoluble particles present

pH

pH is the negative log of the hydrogen ion concentration It can have a major impact on biological and chemical reactions

Metals
Problems associated with excess metals: Can make water taste and smell bad Can stain fixtures Metals in sufficient concentrations are pollutants and can be serious health risks.

Alkalinity
Alkalinity is the capacity of water to absorb

hydrogen ions without significant pH change Bicarbonates, carbonates, and hydroxides are the three chemical forms that contribute to alkalinity

CHEMICALS
All problems

Constituent

Unit
mg/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 mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L /100ml g/L

Range
300-1200 250-850 150-550 100-300 100-400 30-100 70-300 50-200 100-400 100-400 200-1,000 15-90 5-40 10-50 0 0 5-20 1-5 5-15 30-85 20-60 50-200 50-150 106-108 100-400

Typical
700 500 150 150 220 70 150 100 250 250 500 40 25 25 0 0 12 2 10 50 15 100 100 107 250

Wastewater Constituents

Total Solids Dissolved Fixed Volatile Suspended Fixed Volatile Settleable BOD5 TOC COD Total Nitrogen Organic Ammonia Nitrite Nitrate Total Phosphorus Organic Inorganic Chloride Sulfate Alkalinity Grease Total Coliform VOCs

Burks and Minnis, 1994

Wastewater Rates
lbs BOD5/cap/day Class Subdivisions, Higher Cost Subdivisions, Average Subdivisions, Low Cost Motels, Hotels, Trlr. Pks. Apartment Houses Resorts, Camps, Cottages Hospitals Factories or Offices Factories with showers Restaurants Persons Per Unit 3.5 3.5 3.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 per bed per person per person per meal gal/cap/day 100 90 70 50 75 50 200 20 25 5 Average 0.17 0.17 0.17 0.17 0.17 0.17 0.30 0.06 0.07 0.02 with Garbage Grinder 0.25 0.23 0.20 0.20 0.25 0.20 0.35 0.06 BOD5 (mg/L) 205 220 290 400 225 400 200 360 340 450

Goldstein and Moberg, 1973

Mass Loading People & Source

Calculate mass loading to a system

Residents Waste load

Concentration Water quantity - Flow

Mass Loading
Calculate mass loading to a system using

number of residents

Mass (lb) = # (people) x mass/person Mass (lb)= 6 people x 0.17 lbs/person

Mass (lb) = 1.02 lb

Mass Loading
Calculate mass loading to a system using

concentration and flow

Mass (lb) = C (mg/l) x Q (gpd) x 8.34 / 1,000,000 Mass (lb)= 250 mg/l x 240 gpd x 8.34/ 1,000,000

Mass (lb) = 0.5 lb

User Impact on System

Wastewater loadings

Flow Strength Peak loadings Runoff period

Loading variations

Chemicals Cleaning Products Medications

Other Wastewater Flows

Water Treatment Devices

Water Softeners Reverse Osmosis Other? Condensate Ice Machines Basement drains Footing drains

Other Flow

Water Softeners

DIR Demand Initiated Regeneration

September 1, 2003 date requiring - DIR

May bypass the pretreatment component. Connect directly to the pump tank.

Reverse Osmosis

Point of Use

Point of Entry

Under the sink Connect to System No upgrade required

Whole house system Greater volume Need to add to size of System

Other Water Treatment

Other water treatment systems flush water can discharge into System Need to account for flow to System Enter through air gap device as per Uniform Plumbing Code

Other Flows?

What are other flows

Condensate Ice Machines Basement drains Footing drains

How do these impact the system?

Managing Hydraulic Loads

Need to determine the length, timing and

volume of peak flow Estimation of 50% Commonly used Major Consideration: You need to consider the water use that may not be typical. Flow Equalization is key to Success

Flow Equalization/Surge Tank

Moderates flow from facility Determine peak to be moderated

Daily Weekly

Improves treatment by downstream components

Wastewater Flow Characteristics

Type of Facility Airports - per passenger Airports - per employee Apartments - multiple family Boarding Houses Bowling Alleys - per lane (no food) Campgrounds - per tent or travel trailer site - central bathhouse Camps - construction (semi-permanent) Camps - day (no meals served) Camps - luxury Camps - resort - night and day, with limited plumbing Churches - per seat Clubs - country (per resident member) Clubs - country (per nonresident member present) Courts - tourist or mobile home parks with individual bath units Dwellings - single family Flow* (gal/cap/day) 5 15 75 50 75 50 50 15 100 50 5 100 25 50 75 lbs. (cap/day) .020 .050 .175 .140 .150 .130 .140 .031 .208 .140 .020 .208 .052 .140 .170 BOD5 Runoff (hours) 16 16 16 16 8 16 16 16 16 16 4 16 16 16 16 Shock Load Factor low low medium medium medium medium medium medium medium medium high medium medium medium medium

Goldstein and Moberg, 1973

Flow Equalization Tank

Flow Controlled by Surge Tank

Day Sunday pm Monday Daily Flow Timed Dose (gal) (gal) 250 200 350 350 350 350 350 350 350 Volume in Tank (gal) 1000 900 750 550 400 300 650 1000

Tuesday Wednesday 150 Thursday 200 Friday Saturday Sunday 250 700 700

System Flow

Measured

Flow meter
Watch units Gallon- Cubic feet

Pump run time

Hour meter Pump flow rate

Dose events
Cycle counter Dose volume

Estimation

Number of people served Facility

Indicators of Strength
Secondary Treatment Systems Drainfields Following Secondary

Treatment and Disinfection Secondary Treatment Standards Disposal Requirements Additional Requirements

Use of Treatment Systems

Use of an System in areas that have soil conditions that are not suitable for providing the removal of wastewater constituents. These secondary treatment systems remove the majority of the BOD and TSS from the wastewater before application to the soil. May or May not require disinfection prior to discharge to the soil

Use of Treatment Systems

Suitable soil conditions are defined with

respect to:

subsoil texture, restrictive horizons, gravel content, groundwater, flood hazard and fill material.

Secondary Quality Standards BOD, TSS

Parameter 30-day Average Seven-day Average Daily Maximum Single Grab pH Criteria 20 mg/l 30 mg/l 45 mg/l 65 mg/l 6.0 - 9.0 standard units

Secondary Quality Standards CBOD

Parameter 30-day Average Seven-day Average Daily Maximum Single Grab pH Criteria 15 mg/l 25 mg/l 40 mg/l 60 mg/l 6.0 - 9.0 standard units

Commercial Survey

Summary
Wastewater Loading affects system User can impact system performance Other water flows Indicators of strength Drain fields with secondary treatment

Contact Information

Special Thanks to:

Dr. Bruce Lesikar Texas AgriLife Texas Onsite Wastewater Treatment

Research Council Texas Onsite Wastewater Association