Benchmarking WWTP Control Strategies With Robustness and Economic Measures as Performance Criteria

Abstract

Carefully conducted model-based simulation studies have become an important part of studies evaluating control strategies for wastewater treatments plants. During the past four years a consortium of researchers and practitioners developed a standard test methodology called the Benchmark, a simulation procedure defined around a simulation model, a plant layout, realistic influent loads and a test protocol that provides an objective measure of performance. It is this measure of performance that is the focus of this paper. First, a total cost index, TCI, is developed that makes a weighted sum of the different performance evaluation criteria (energy consumption, sludge production, effluent quality, …). In addition a robustness index is proposed that aims to evaluate the sensitivity of the performance to the WWTP characteristics. It requires some well-designed additional simulations that evaluate the performance under process conditions that differ slightly from the ones defined in the benchmark protocol.

Wastewater treatment plant performance assessment using time-function-based effluent quality index and multiple regression models: the case of Bahir Dar textile factory

“…4 for both moving average and instantaneous data. In the net EQI model, the weighted pollution load over and above the violation concentration, was calculated to measure the treatment efficiency (Amerlinck et al, 2001 ; Jeppsson & Pons, 2004 ).…”

Textile wastewater treatment plant performance assessment using time-function based effluent quality index and multiple regression models

“…4 for both moving average and instantaneous data. In the net EQI model, the weighted pollution load over and above the violation concentration, was calculated to measure the treatment efficiency (Amerlinck et al, 2001;Jeppsson & Pons, 2004).…”