Biological treatment systems in Australia can be an important investment for your facility. When installed and implemented correctly, biological systems can provide your process with a long list of benefits. However, there can be some challenges associated with such systems. If your facility is considering biological treatment, you might be wondering whether there are some common problems you need to prepare for.
In general, when designing, engineering, installing and operating a biological treatment system for your facility, issues arise during the design and operational phases. Read on as we break down the more frequently occurring mishaps during the operation of biological treatment systems below.
Common design and engineering issues
Most problems with such treatment systems occur at the design and engineering stages. When studies are not completed for long periods over vast amounts of data, it is common for systems to fall short in some way. Read on to learn some design and engineering stage issues
Choosing inappropriate treatment technologies
In some cases, chemical solutions might be a better selection for the application rather than biological. You may see a lot when hazardous wastewater components intoxicate the bacteria or when there is a low degradable but very high non-biodegradable organic content. Chemical oxidation is preferred in most treatment options versus biological.
Your water treatment experts need to look at the BOD: COD ratio to ensure the waste is biodegradable and there is not a lot of toxicity. Cheese, dairy products and whey produce highly biodegradable waste and, in such cases, top biological treatment systems are a good fit. But when the ratio of BOD to COD is low, it indicates that there are a lot of organic materials present that are not biodegradable and that chemical/physical technologies might be an excellent choice.
Inaccurate waste stream data
It is important to gather enough information about your waste stream at the beginning of the engineering process. How are you sure your flow rates are accurate? Do you have the right flow rates? flow rates in dairy and food processing facilities go up and down and change over time.
We often see these facilities spend 2- or 3-days tracking down their wastewater data when they might need a two-week thorough study. This ensures that the system engineers and designers know the average rates although they are certain of the minimums and maximums over time.
It is important to know about the chemical makeup and chemistry of the water, and whether there is a good level of data about the normal average concentration of COD, BOD, oils, sugar, fats, temperature, pH and salinity. Is there a clear understanding of water chemistry?
It is essential to know this information when designing biological treatment systems in Australia. With Biological treatment, you do not just need a good design but you will also need to know the necessary water pre-treatment measures. Pre-treatment could be simple but you will need temperature and pH control capabilities. If these steps are not designed correctly, you will see an increase in operational problems.
