Research on Waste Stabilization Ponds in the United Kingdom: Sludge Accumulation in Pilot-scale Primary Facultative Ponds

Abstract

Three pilot-scale facultative ponds, located at Esholt wastewater treatment works in Bradford, West Yorkshire, UK were operated in parallel for 53 months, each with different BOD loadings and hydraulic retention times. Measurements of the sludge accumulation were made at 6-monthly intervals commencing at 3 months after start-up. In addition grab sludge samples were collected and analysed for total solids, volatile solids and faecal coliforms. After the first year of operation the sludge accumulation rate was 0.74 m3 yr(-1) for all three ponds (p=816), independent of BOD loading and HRT; the per capita accumulation rates were within the range 0.08-0.16 m3 person(-1) yr(-1). Evidence of degradation was found in the sludge from the percentage of volatile solids in the dry solids, but insignificant removal of faecal coliforms.

Wind‐aerated lagoons for sustainable treatment of wastewaters from small communities

“…There was no sludge accumulation greater than 2 cm at any point in the rest of the primary lagoon. Abis (2002) also measured sludge accumulation in an experimental facultative lagoon and noted the sludge accumulated mainly around the inlet.…”

Assessment of a Microalgae Pond for Post‐treatment of the Effluent From an Anaerobic Fixed Bed Reactor Treating Distillery Wastewater

“…Anaerobic treatment followed by stabilization ponds or lagoons as secondary treatment offers a simple and economical alternative of treatment of distillery wastewaters with the aim of using the final effluent as soil conditioner. Stabilization ponds have been widely studied by many authors and successfully applied [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. They are one of the most effective and widely used methods for wastewater purification in developing countries especially in hot climates because of the high values of natural radiation and temperatures usually achieved in these tropical countries.…”

“…This is owing to their efficiency and to the low cost of construction, operation and maintenance. The natural processes of stabilizing organic waste by bacterial oxidation and oxygen production by algae are fundamental in the treatment of sewage and industrial wastewaters [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]. The oxygen required for aerobic bacteria respiration for the assimilation of organic materials is provided by microalgae photosynthesis and no additional aeration is required [16][17][18][19][20][21].…”

The Role of Environmental Variables in Waste Stabilization Ponds' Morphodynamics

“…Sludge accumulation depends on hydraulic factors including pond geometry, inlet and outlet characteristics, mixing conditions, dead-zones, etc. (Nelson et al, 2004;Abis and Mara, 2005;Alvarado et al, 2012a;Murphy, 2012;Ouedraogo et al, 2016;Coggins et al, 2017). Wind pattern and magnitude can be dominant driving forces of WSP hydraulics (Gu and Stefan, 1995;Brissaud et al, 2003;Badrot-Nico et al, 2009), therefore a strong influence of these variables in sludge accumulation is expected but there is no research exploring this.…”

“…Wind pattern and magnitude can be dominant driving forces of WSP hydraulics (Gu and Stefan, 1995;Brissaud et al, 2003;Badrot-Nico et al, 2009), therefore a strong influence of these variables in sludge accumulation is expected but there is no research exploring this. Ponds with single inlets as well as facultative ponds tend to have highest sludge deposits at the proximity of the inlet while those with multiple inlets and maturation ponds have uniformly distributed sludge patterns throughout their bottoms (Nelson et al, 2004;Abis and Mara, 2005;Coggins et al, 2017). Also in facultative ponds, sludge accumulation patterns follow flow velocity distribution, with higher flow velocities areas having higher sludge depths (Alvarado et al, 2012a).…”