Digital Control of a Waste Water Treatment Plant

Wastewater, also written as waste water, is any water that has been adversely affected in quality by anthropogenic influence. Wastewater can originate from a combination of domestic, industrial, commercial or agricultural activities, surface runoff or storm water, and from sewer inflow or infiltration. Municipal wastewater (also called sewage) is usually conveyed in a combined sewer or sanitary sewer, and treated at a wastewater treatment plant. Treated wastewater is discharged into receiving water via an effluent pipe. Wastewaters generated in areas without access to centralized sewer systems rely on on-site wastewater systems. These typically comprise a septic tank, drain field, and optionally an on-site treatment unit. The management of wastewater belongs to the overarching term sanitation, just like the management of human excreta, solid waste and storm water (drainage). Industrial wastewater is defined as any wastewater generated from any manufacturing, processing, institutional, commercial, or agricultural operation, or any operation that discharges other than domestic or sanitary wastewater.

•Describe the activated sludge process and its control variables. •List List three types of activated sludge treatment plants.

Due to water shortage, wastewater reuse has gained great importance in many parts of the world. Wastewater reuse practices have become valuable source in water resources management. As an independent source of water, reclaimed water can increase the reliability of water supply. Reclaimed wastewater requires effective measures to protect public health and the environment. Strong wastewater reuse guidelines and regulations are developed for the purpose. It is difficult to establish wastewater guidelines and regulations that can suit all regions in the world. Among the broad reasons for this as limiting factors, are economics of countries relating chosen treatment technologies and additionally, the local context of a region must be taken into consideration in settings. Almost all wastewater reuse guidelines and regulations are bacteriological-based. Some of them consider biochemical parameters. In this lesson you will comprehend the importance as well as the necessity of setting wastewater reuse guidelines and regulations. You will be aware of arising problems for getting universal valid standards. You will get an overview of guidelines and regulations existing worldwide and regionally.

In many semiarid and arid countries, water is now becoming an increasingly limited resource and managers are forced to take into account sources of water that may be used economically and efficiently to encourage further development. Simultaneously, with the population increasing at a high rate, the requirement for increased production of food is apparent. The prospective for irrigation to increase both the agricultural productivity and living standards of the poor has long been acknowledged. Irrigated agriculture occupies nearly 17% of the total arable land in the world but the yield from this land includes about 34% of the world total. This perspective is even more distinct in arid areas like the Near East Region, where only 30% of the cultivated land is irrigated but it yields around 75% of total agricultural production. In the same area, more than 50% of the food necessities are imported and the increased rate in demand for the food surpasses the rate of an upsurge in agricultural production (Tunney et al., 2000).