Abstract:
Wastewater treatment plants and processes for treating wastewater are described. The wastewater treatment plant utilizes channel plug flow dynamics with attached growth media and pure oxygen or mixtures of pure oxygen and compressed air.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/852,031, filed Mar. 15, 2013, entitled “Wastewater Treatment Apparatus And Process Therefor,” which application is incorporated herein in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention is directed to wastewater treatment plants and a new and unique apparatus and process for treating wastewater. More particularly, one preferred embodiment of the invention is directed to wastewater treatment utilizing channel plug flow dynamics with attached growth media and pure oxygen or mixtures of pure oxygen and compressed air. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Biological wastewater treatment in the modern era has been accomplished by the cultivation of beneficial microorganisms being “grown” in a vessel, e.g. a tank, pond, lagoon (pond with mechanical mixers), etc., where the wastewater, such as domestic sewage, industrial wastewater, commercial wastewater, etc., can be introduced as a “food source” for the microbes. The microbes reduce the waste, i.e. the pollutants, resulting in an acceptable treated effluent, i.e. discharge water, which can be discharged to streams, rivers, bays, groundwater, or reuse applications such as landscape features, carwash water, irrigation, etc. The technology for this type of treatment has evolved exponentially in recent years due to the advancement of scientific and engineering understanding, more stringent environmental regulations, and economic advantages in the manufacturing sector. Perhaps most important in today&#39;s environment, there is a need to advance the usage of reclaimed water to offset a diminishing domestic water supply. 
         [0004]    Early in the development of biological wastewater treatment, a simple pond or lagoon was utilized as a treatment process. Wastewater was contained after collection from, for example, a sewer network within a community, in the pond/lagoon where it was retained for several weeks. There, the inherent microbes would have a chance to reduce the waste allowing “treated” water to be discharged into a water body. 
         [0005]    Later, in an effort to accelerate the process and provide a much smaller footprint for wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), mechanical systems were developed to provide the necessary air and microbe manipulation to simulate what the sewer lagoons were doing in past years, only much faster and with a much smaller footprint. An advantage of these systems was the higher level of treatment provided and, therefore, a broader possibility of discharge locations. These systems were termed “activated sludge” treatment plants due to the microbes being “activated” by a high level of nutrients and carbon supplied by the wastewater thus allowing accelerated growth of the organisms resulting in a very high percentage of waste material removal. “Sludge” in this context is a coalescing of the microbes and not the waste itself. Treatment plants of this type could routinely remove 90-95% of the pollutants, i.e. organic matter, in the wastewater. 
         [0006]    In approximately the last decade, modification of the activated sludge process has added another highly efficient method of removing the organic matter from wastewater utilizing the “attached growth process” in lieu of a suspended growth process. Thus, in the conventional activated sludge systems, the microbes and wastewater were mixed together in the vessel/tank, sometimes referred to as a reactor, along with aeration devices such as diffusers, mixers, etc., that would keep the water completely mixed allowing sufficient contact time for the microbes to do their job. The development of attached growth media systems supplemented the suspended growth process by the addition of “media” of some sort, such as polyethylene extruded polymer, similar to a plastic honeycomb, placed into the reactor to allow the microbes to attach themselves and grow rather than being suspended in the mixed water. This media has a high surface area to volume ratio allowing a lot of surface for the microbes to grow in a small volume of space. This has proven to be a good system for some applications. 
         [0007]    While known WWTPs have been useful, there is a need for WWTPs for treating small flow, e.g. 100,000 gallons per day or less, and more preferably 50,000 gallons per day, having a small foot print and which is efficient in removing pollutants. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    The invention is directed to a new apparatus and method using variations of the plug flow process, the attached growth media process and subjecting the wastewater to nearly pure oxygen (&gt;90%) vs. air (19% O 2 ) or mixtures of pure oxygen and compressed air as discussed hereafter. Thus, the invention is a WWTP that uses continuous “channel” plug flow dynamics with attached growth media and pure oxygen as a source of required oxygen, or a combination of pure oxygen and compressed air. 
         [0009]    Objects of the invention include, but are not limited to, the following: (a) a reduction in the retention time within the reactor by utilizing oxygen, thus a smaller footprint and smaller basin per gallon for treatment; (b) minimization of “washout” as with complete mix systems; (c) higher microbial populations, thus higher treatment efficiency; (d) higher reduction in recalcitrant organic compounds due to higher oxygen concentrations in the mixed liquor; (e) reduction of short-circuiting in the flow path as with complete mix systems; and (f) a more cost effective system in terms of space and usage. Places with smaller plots where space is at a premium, e.g. restaurants, carwashes, etc., will find the invention a more viable option than the known treatment processes. Additionally, offshore operations such as oil platforms and marine vessels will find the invention very useful given available space restrictions and the required effluent quality. 
         [0010]    The present invention includes an apparatus for treatment of wastewater comprising a wastewater treatment tank for treating an influent wastewater and providing treated effluent discharge water. The tank may comprise a tank having a bottom wall, side walls, a first end wall, a second end wall and a cover providing access to the inside of the tank. The first end wall includes a means for receiving influent wastewater and the second end wall includes a means for discharging effluent treated discharge water. There are at least two baffles providing for at least three separate compartments in the tank adapted to provide for plug flow movement of the wastewater. The compartments may include attached growth media for treating the wastewater. There is an oxygen source or an oxygen and compressed air source connected to an air diffuser in each of the compartments for treating the water. The influent wastewater enters the tank through the first end wall and flows through the at least three compartments utilizing plug flow movement and is treated by the attached growth media and the oxygen or oxygen and compressed air to provide a treated effluent discharge water which exits the tank through the second end wall. 
         [0011]    The present invention further includes a method of treating wastewater comprising pumping wastewater into a wastewater treatment tank. The wastewater treatment tank comprises at least two baffles providing for at least three separate compartments in the tank adapted to provide for plug flow movement of the wastewater. The compartments may include attached growth media for treating the wastewater. There is an oxygen source or an oxygen and compressed air source connected to an air diffuser in each of the compartments for treating the water. The influent wastewater enters the tank and flows through the at least three compartments utilizing plug flow movement and is treated by the attached growth media and the oxygen or oxygen and compressed air to provide a treated effluent discharge water which exits the tank. 
         [0012]    These primary and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments of the invention and from the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0013]    The following detailed description of the specific non-limiting embodiments of the present invention can be best understood when read in conjunction with the following drawings, where like structures are indicated by like reference numbers. 
           [0014]    Referring to the drawings: 
           [0015]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the apparatus of the present invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 2  is an end view of the influent end of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0017]      FIG. 3  is an end view of the effluent end of the apparatus of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  is a top view of the apparatus of  FIG. 1  showing the inside of the apparatus with the growth media partially cut away in the first and third compartments and showing the wastewater flow (certain of the other components of the tank are not shown for ease of reference). 
           [0019]      FIG. 5  is taken along line  5 - 5  of  FIG. 4  showing an elevational view of a first baffle and an additional area for filtration or treatment of the treated water. 
           [0020]      FIG. 6  is taken along line  6 - 6  of  FIG. 4  showing an elevational view of a second baffle. 
           [0021]      FIG. 7  is a top view of the apparatus of  FIG. 1  with the growth media removed and showing the diffuser components of the tank. 
           [0022]      FIG. 8  is taken along line  8 - 8  of  FIG. 7  and shows an elevational view of the influent end of the tank of  FIG. 1  showing the piping attached to the diffusers. 
           [0023]      FIG. 9  is taken along line  9 - 9  of  FIG. 6  and is a partial elevational view showing the outlet pipe. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0024]    The present invention is directed to the treatment of wastewater from various sources. The size and scale of the present invention will vary depending upon the amount of wastewater to be treated and the nature of the wastewater being treated. The present invention is useful for the treatment of wastewater from carwash facilities. The description of the present invention will be directed to a wastewater treatment plant for treatment of wastewater from carwash facilities. However, it is understood that the invention may be directed to a number of other wastewater treatment facilities, including as described in this application. 
         [0025]    The wastewater treatment plant of the present invention includes a tank  10 . The tank includes side walls  12  and  14 , end walls  16  and  18 , a bottom  20 , and a top  21 . The top  21  includes a handles  21   a  for opening the top via hinges as seen in  FIG. 3  and there is a center support rail  21   b  for the top members  21 . It is understood that the top remains closed in operation, and there is a gasket  23  (only partially shown in  FIG. 4 ), preferably made of foam, surrounding the upper ends of the side and end walls to maintain the oxygen or oxygen and compressed air in the system. A preferred dimension for a WWTP  10  for treatment of wastewater from a carwash averaging about 3,000 gallons per day is approximately 6 feet in length, 3 feet in width and 4 feet in height, although these dimensions may vary without departing from the scope of the invention. The tank may include casters  25  and may be movable. 
         [0026]    The tank  10  receives the wastewater from a carwash and provides for the treatment of the wastewater. The tank includes influent openings  22  in end wall  16  for receiving the wastewater and an effluent opening  24  in the end wall  18  for discharging the treated wastewater, i.e. pollutant-reduced water. The invention uses a plug flow process providing for a continuous path for the movement and the treatment of the wastewater as shown, for example, in  FIG. 4 . The tank is divided by baffles  26  and  28  providing for separate compartments and a serpentine path for the continuous flow of the wastewater, i.e. plug flow movement of the wastewater. While a presently preferred embodiment includes two baffles  26  and  28 , a different number of baffles may be used without departing from the scope of the invention. 
         [0027]    More specifically, referring to  FIGS. 5 and 6  the baffles  26  and  28  will be described.  FIG. 5  shows baffle  26  which extends vertically from the bottom  20  of tank  10  and includes an opening  40  for the water flow from the first compartment of the tank to the second compartment of the tank. Baffle  26  includes baffle extension members  50  and  52  which extend from side wall  16  to the wall  70  of compartment  34  and provide reinforcement for the tank sides. Additionally, baffle  26  includes support plates  29  which provides support for the growth media  30 . Such support plates  29  are in each compartment as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0028]    Referring now to  FIG. 6 , baffle  28  is described. Like baffle  26 , baffle  28  extends from the bottom  20  of the tank vertically close to the top portion of the tank. Baffle  28  includes opening  42  for the water flow. Like baffle  26 , there are baffle extensions  54  and  56  which provide support to the side walls. It is further noted that the side walls  12  and  14  also include similar extension members  58  and  60  providing means for attachment of plates  29  for support of growth media  30  and structural support for tank  10 . Similar to baffle  26 , there are also support plates  29  attached thereto and extending to the extension members in the side walls of the tank. 
         [0029]    Referring now to  FIG. 7 , there is shown diffuser members  36 . Diffuser members  36  are held on support plates  62 . In a preferred embodiment, EDI FlexAir™ “T” Series fine bubble tube diffusers  36  are used, manufactured by Environmental Dynamics Inc., Columbia Mo., although other brand diffusers are useful for air/O 2  diffusion and mixing provided the specifications are met. The diffuser members are connected to air supply members  46 . Referring to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , the wastewater treatment plant may utilize pure oxygen fed from an oxygen generator (not shown) to input source  32  as the source of oxygen for the aerobic bacteria and other organisms in the oxidation of organic chemicals in various sources of wastewater. In the alternative, the plant may utilize pure oxygen and compressed air, the compressed air and pure oxygen being regulated in the specific amounts depending upon the wastewater being treated. The oxygen and compressed air is fed to a manifold  45  and distributed by pipes  46 , preferably made of PVC, to diffusers  36 . Diffusers  36  provide fine bubbles to accelerate the growth of the microbes for treating the wastewater. 
         [0030]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , the tank includes attached growth media  30   a,    30   b  and  30   c  for the treatment of the wastewater (media  30   a  and  30   c  being shown partially cut away). As stated above, the tank includes an input source  32  for introducing oxygen into the system for promoting the growth of organisms on the growth media  30  for treating the wastewater and removing pollutants from the wastewater. A presently preferred growth media is a polymer extrusion media made by Matala Water Technology of Taiwan. However, other manufacturers growth media may be used with the understanding that the proper surface to volume ratio and compatibility with wastewater specifications are met. The first approximately ⅓ of the flow length will contain the polymer media  30   a  with a minimum surface to volume ratio of about 88 ft 2 /ft 3  followed by the next roughly ⅓ flow length containing polymer media  30   b  with a minimum surface to volume ratio of about 111 ft 2 /ft 3 . The final roughly ⅓ of flow length, where polishing occurs, may have a polymer media  30   c  having a minimum surface to volume ratio of about 140 ft 2 /ft 3 . The media density may be modified as needed for desired treatment results. 
         [0031]    The hydraulic configuration of the tank is a continuous flow path, i.e. plug flow, with preferably a minimum length to width ratio through the reactor containing the media of about 8:1 depending on wastewater characteristics and composition. It is understood that this ratio may further be in the range of about 8:1 to about 12:1. The wastewater will flow through the reactor as a fixed film process utilizing a high surface area to volume media made from the growth media which will provide growth sites for the aerobic bacteria and other inherent organisms, or a bacteria “condominium” where they will grow and multiply thus reducing pollutants in the wastewater. 
         [0032]    The tank includes an internal final compartment  34  where the reactor, i.e., aeration chambers or compartments, terminates to be used for installation of an additional filtration (e.g., ultra, nano, etc.) unit as needed. This compartment  34  is especially useful in meeting water reuse requirements, although it may be optional depending on required water quality. The final compartment can also be used for settling, disinfection, or chemical addition. 
         [0033]    A preferred embodiment uses a tank constructed using 5/16 inch aluminum plate with welded joints and seams. Other materials may be utilized for the tank construction provided that the materials are compatible with the characteristics of the untreated wastewater and structurally capable of supporting the system components and weight of water, including aluminum, stainless steel, fiberglass, or any extruded polymer (e.g., plastic, high density polyethylene, etc.) The tank preferred preferably includes a member  37  to drain the water from all of the compartments. 
         [0034]    The operation of the apparatus and method of the invention will now be described in relation to the drawings. Referring, for example, to  FIG. 2 , there are two inlet openings  22 , e.g. a 1.75 inch diameter aluminum pipe fitting and a 1.25 inch diameter aluminum pipe fitting, for receiving the wastewater, in this example wastewater from a carwash using tank  10  as described above. The openings provide for receiving different size pump hoses. The wastewater from a carwash is pumped through one of openings  22  into tank  10 , preferably in the range of about two gallons to about six gallons per minute. Referring to  FIG. 4 , the wastewater is approximately an inch above the growth media  30  and below baffles  26  and  28 . As stated, the growth media is preferably of different densities, the least dense being in the first compartment and the most dense being in the third compartment prior to overflow into the filtration/chemical addition compartment  34 . The water circulates from the first compartment through an opening  40  to the second compartment and circulates through the second compartment through an opening  42  to the third compartment. The circulation time may be in the range of about eight to 24 hours depending on the oxygen concentration utilized. Thereafter, the treated water is moved from the third compartment via overflow pipe  44 , as shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , to the final compartment  34  for any additional treatment. Thereafter, the treated water is removed from the tank through effluent opening  24 . In this example, the wastewater is treated with pure oxygen entering from an oxygen source through pipe  32  and fed to a manifold  45  which feeds conduits  46  to the fine bubble diffusers  36 . This accelerates the growth of the microbes for treated the wastewater. It is understood that the rate of the oxygen feed may be varied thereby reducing or increasing the wastewater detention time in the tank. It is understood that instead of pure oxygen, a mixture of pure oxygen and compressed air may be used. 
         [0035]    Accordingly, an objective of the present invention is a combination of nearly pure oxygen as an oxygen source or mixed as required with compressed ambient air with continuous plug flow hydraulics and attached growth media as the substrate for bacteria to attach and grow. This provides for a smaller footprint of the apparatus and process, thereby achieving lower costs, the ability to utilize the treated water in sustainable applications such as water reuse, and a more complete oxidation of pollutants. An additional advantage is the reduced waste sludge volume as found in conventional suspended growth complete mixed systems. 
         [0036]    The invention may be used by entities requiring wastewater treatment with approximately less than 100,000 gallons per day of flow, and preferably about 50,000 gallons per day, including the carwash industry for treatment and/or reuse of wastewater from the facility, marine vessels and offshore oil platforms, remote land-based oil exploration sites, and any other commercial, industrial, and domestic applications requiring wastewater treatment. 
         [0037]    The exemplary embodiments herein disclosed are not intended to be exhaustive or to unnecessarily limit the scope of the invention. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the present invention so that others skilled in the art may practice the invention. As will be apparent to one skilled in the art, various modifications can be made within the scope of the aforesaid description. Such modifications being within the ability of one skilled in the art form a part of the present invention and are embraced by the appended claims.