Phosphorus removal from wastewater and trade effluent from food and beverage processing plants is required as wastewater requires treatment before able to be released. The most common forms of phosphorus in wastewaters are organic compounds, orthophosphates and polyphosphates which can get hydrolyzed up to orthophosphate. This can be derived from several different sources including animal waste, cleaning detergents, and food residue. Typically, at food and beverage wastewater processing plants there is less focus on reducing levels of phosphorus than there is, for example, on reducing biological oxygen demand (BOD).
However, wastewater needs special treatment if the phosphate levels are to reach acceptable levels. Wastewater processing plants and businesses that fail to reach these lowered levels may face severe legal penalties, fines, and damage to reputation.
Phosphorus can be found in wastewater in the form of organic compounds or nutrients. It is a legal requirement for phosphorus levels to be strictly controlled in wastewater. Phosphate is a nutrient that unchecked will cause significant damage to water environments. If levels are too high, it can lead to eutrophication of water.
Eutrophication is the over notification of water which results in a negative impact on the aquatic environment. Eutrophication results in a deterioration of water quality, increase of algae and aquatic plants, and overall, harmfully impacts aquatic life. It is important to keep nutrient levels low, by reducing harmfully high phosphorus levels released into the water. That way, the balance of the environment remains constant.
Since the early 1990s, directives from the EU have led to an increased tightening of consents around phosphorus removal. Any food or drink manufacturer needs to adhere to these tight consents or could face harsh legal penalties and a severe impact on their business. The upside is that effective treatment of phosphorus in wastewater leads to increased sludge levels which will reduce further costs of disposal.
What is the environmental impact of high phosphorus levels?
Phosphorus naturally occurs in the environment and is required by living organisms. It can be found in soil. It is rich in nutrients and at normal levels can support the growth of algae, providing both food and habitats for aquatic life.
However, when there is too much phosphorus in aquatic environments it can lead to eutrophication, as mentioned above. Rapid deterioration of water quality, food resources for aquatic life, and serious knock-on health risks to public drinking water.
At high levels, algae can grow far too quickly for an ecosystem to handle. This can result in algal blooms, which lead to a significant loss of oxygen for aquatic organisms resulting in illness or stress for the fish. Algal blooms are thick enough to block out sunlight and put aquatic life under extreme stress. Decomposed organic matter in the water in turn becomes a different kind of phosphate which perpetuates and exacerbates the harmful cycle.
Algal blooms are also incredibly harmful to humans as they can contaminate drinking water, even at low levels.
Any efficient wastewater management treatment process will consist of several stages. There are preliminary stages in addition to both primary and secondary treatments. Each of these plays a key role in reducing phosphorus levels in wastewater and reducing the potential harm to the environment wastewater is discharged into.
At a preliminary stage, screens and grit chambers can be used to reduce the total volume of TSS (total suspended solids) along with other floating materials. At later primary stages DAF (dissolved air floatation) and anaerobic ponds are sometimes used. DAF has become popular because it requires little space and can be a more flexible application. It has been shown in certain cases to remove phosphorus in municipal wastewater up to 22%.
There are currently several methods for removing phosphorus from wastewater, both biological and chemical. As we will be looking at there are many chemical treatments available. However, these are often avoided due to the cost involved and the secondary pollution created by using coagulants.
The most effective methods of reducing phosphorus in wastewater are commonly held to be either biological or chemical methods. Alternatively, a combination of both is used in some treatment facilities. However, the ideal method varies from situation to situation depending on a few factors relating to the type of industry, the composition of effluent, site location, budget and so on.
For the best possible results, it is important to create a wastewater treatment process using the best tanks available. Enduramaxx is staffed by experts in the wastewater treatment industry. For further information on the available options and bespoke solutions for your business please get in touch today.
Chemical Treatment Removal of Phosphorus
There are several ways to chemically remove phosphorus from wastewater. However, there are significant advantages to removing as much phosphorus as possible at an early primary stage of treatment.
Multi-point dosing may be required to achieve ideal consent levels of 1mg/l or below. This is more cost-effectively done at an earlier stage as the lower concentration of phosphorus to be targeted then the greater the relative dose will be required. This will save on both operational costs but also time.
Dosing wastewater with a metal-based coagulant is a well-regarded method of reducing phosphorus levels. There are two potential routes. Metal can be added to the wastewater which will react with phosphates contained in the water and form metal-based flocs. Or the metal ions can hydrolyze in the wastewater to create metal hydroxide. The addition of calcium, iron, and aluminium salts to achieve phosphorus precipitation is another such chemical option.
These flocs can then be safely removed from the wastewater. DAF (dissolved air floatation) is a proven method of safely removing these flocs. However, the process that is chosen is dependent on a business’s needs, budget, and site location.
Over the years there have been many developments in biological treatments for phosphorus removal. One of the main advantages of removing phosphorus is the reduction in chemical costs and sludge production. However, there has been some debate as to whether biological methods can be as effective as many of the available chemical methods.
Anaerobic or aerobic biological methods are used for the removal of phosphorus. By stimulating microorganisms through these methods phosphates can be removed as polyphosphate. When these microorganisms are gathered in great enough numbers the phosphorus can be removed along with waste-activated sludge.
The use of microalgae for phosphorus removal is significantly more environmentally friendly than chemical methods. And it is just as effective. The use of microalgae has become steadily more common because of its efficient ability to eliminate heavy metals, pathogens, and other potentially harmful solutions from wastewater.
These types of treatments are reliant upon the ability of phototrophic microorganisms to maintain an oxygen supply to pollutant degraders which in turn enhances the removal of pathogens and excessive nutrients. As they are so small, microalgae feature a high photosynthetic rate which allows them to convert sunlight into higher rates of biomass growth.
Biosorption is a physicochemical process that utilizes microalgae to remove heavy metals from wastewater. It is an increasingly popular and more affordable alternative to conventional phosphorus removal from wastewater treatment processes.
Phosphorus Removal from Wastewater – how can Enduramaxx help?
Enduramaxx understands that phosphorus levels may rise to excessive levels using industrial applications. This is why the correct holding tanks and equipment are necessary to safely reduce and remove phosphates. By utilizing these tanks, phosphorus content can be limited in wastewater which will safeguard aquatic environments.
With many years of experience in all aspects of wastewater treatment methods, we can supply food and beverage processing plants with tanks and treatment tanks that can assist in effective phosphorus removal from wastewater.
You can find a wide range of Flocculation & Wastewater tanks on the Enduramaxx site. By removing TSS (Total Suspended Solids) at an early stage, phosphorus levels can be reduced significantly. A flocculation tank can also safely remove other harmful impurities and reduce turbidity.
Enduramaxx is equipped to stock your business with Bulk Storage and Chemical storage tanks. These tanks can be tailored to suit your business and its needs. All our tanks are built using High-Density Polyethylene or Polypropylene. Enduramaxx’s design engineers are happy to advise and guide clients on all the available options that will suit them. There are an enormous number of off-the-rack tanks that customers can choose from or alternatively our fabricators can supply a tank tailored to your requirements.
Conical tanks are an effective tool to use in conjunction with microalgae for phosphorus removal. Conical tanks can assist with various applications including Pollutants Removal, Microalgae Cultivation, Photobioreactors.
For phosphorus removal, conical tanks are highly effective at pollutant removal. Shallow cone tanks are more effective for water treatment and settlement applications.
Conical tanks can be used for microalgae cultivation for growing algae. Production of microalgae is carried out in smaller steep-sided conical tanks which are used for plant growth and cultivation. Medium and larger tanks are also used as photobioreactor tanks.
Conical tanks may be used as photobioreactors for cultivating algae. This is because algae require constant light to maximize effectiveness.
For more details on tanks for Phosphorus Removal from Wastewater – please get in touch today on 01778 302879.