Spatial and Temporal Modeling on Energy Consumption of Wastewater Treatment Based on Machine Learning Algorithms

Abstract

To explore the water-energy-carbon nexus of wastewater treatment (WWT), advanced tools such as machine learning play a crucial role. Current research has primarily constructed energy efficiency models, but there exists a lack in considering comprehensive dimensions and comparing pollutant removal types. In this study, we conducted spatial and temporal modeling to predict the energy consumption (EC) of WWT via machine learning approaches. EC (kWh) was the target feature, with the input features covering operational conditions, environmental benefits, and externalities. The optimal spatial model obtained a test R 2 of 0.8224 in ridge regression, while the temporal model achieved a test R 2 of 0.7253 in random forest. Besides, the removal amount (10 3 kg) fit best with EC during the spatial modeling, while the discharge concentration (mg/L) fit best with EC during the temporal modeling. Notably, treatment volume, the removal of chemical oxygen demand, and the removal of ammonia nitrogen emerged as the most significant factors. Given this, our findings suggest optimization implications including scale economy utilization and aeration improvement. The spatial and temporal dimensions also illuminated tailored strategies on influent regulation, technology selection, and effluent standard settings for a specific region and season. Results will provide valuable guidance for existing operation and future design of WWT projects toward energy-saving and carbon neutrality.

Applications of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Data Analytics in Water Environments

“…Other contributions introduce novel methodologies that combine ML with statistical approaches to address various environmental problems, such as sewer overflow pollution abatement, fault detection in water and wastewater treatment, , an assay for source apportionment of per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS), detection of freshwater algae, and influent water data . Beyond water quality, ML has been applied to model water quantity, exploring dominant factors influencing urban industrial wastewater discharges, model energy consumption of wastewater treatment, identify endocrine-active pollutants in the organic Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 1–4) and their toxic potentials, and employ quantitative biodescriptors to predict in vivo toxicity …”