E2.04 Pfluger 2017 ReNUWIt Annual Meeting Poster

Current best practices activated sludge facilities with anaerobic digestion consume approximately 1500-2000kwH/MG, but at most generate only 1/3 of the energy need from the raw wastewater. Pilot-scale coupled hybrid anaerobic reactors for the generation of energy (CHARGE) systems at PCWRA and the Mines Park Test Bed have demonstrated long-term enhanced primary treatment of domestic wastewater at ambient temperatures with stoichiometric generation of methane.

Our next step is the demonstration of a CHARGE system that achieves EPA secondary standards for BOD and TSS from raw wastewater. Research at the two CHARGE pilot sites is coordinated, and this poster focuses on performance of the hybrid reactor at the Mines Park Test Bed.

The Mines Park CHARGE system (total system volume of 2.8 m3) consists of three equally-sized compartments (H:W = 12:1) that function as an anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR) and a fourth, smaller (H:W = 4:1) anaerobic fixed film reactor compartment (AFFR). Since November 2015, reactor has been continuously fed with domestic wastewater originating from a 250-unit apartment complex housing students and families at the Colorado School of Mines at a rate of 0.5 L/min. After approximately 250 days of operations (July 2016), the reactor reached an effluent tCOD = 200 mg/L and TSS = 30 mg/L. From July to Sept. 2016, the reactor effluent was close to the EPA secondary standards for TSS (30 mg/L) while removing >70% tCOD. Reactor performance declined slightly as wastewater temperatures decreased from 24 ̊C to 10-15 ̊C.

The goals of the current research are to:
• Meet secondary treatment performance
• Generate stoichiometric methane from the organic matter removal
• Link microbial community structure to performance to support model
development
• Determine appropriate post treatment options to manage nutrients