Wastewater monitoring for treatment plants

In the biological cleaning stage in wastewater treatment plants, a considerable amount of energy is required to achieve a perfect result. Too little gassing in biological wastewater treatment leads to an increase in the direct emission of greenhouse gases, such as nitrous oxide and methane, from the aeration tanks This results in more energy being used for gassing than necessary. Optimizing the gassing performance therefore holds great potential for saving energy costs and thus also indirect CO2 emissions. Variolytics addresses this optimization issue with reliable wastewater monitoring technology. Variolytics technology for optimizing processes in wastewater treatment plants helps operators save energy costs as well as chemicals and reduce the generation of greenhouse gases in aeration tanks.

Communal Wastewater Treatment Plants

The European Union wants to achieve greenhouse gas neutrality by 2050. Germany wants to achieve the climate target as early as 2045. The Climate Act specifies that greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced to a minimum in all activities and that there must be no further increase in greenhouse gas concentrations.

Accordingly, the waste management and miscellaneous sector, which includes wastewater treatment, must reduce its emissions to 5 million metric tons of CO2 equivalents as early as 2030. With the wastewater monitoring module from Variolytics, you calculate the legally required emission regulations with foresight and now take the path towards climate neutrality. With our monitoring solution for communal wastewater treatment plants, you reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions caused by your treatment process. At the same time, you save electricity costs with the help of targeted process control.

Advantages of wastewater monitoring for Communal Treatment Plants

Reduce emissions

Save electricity

Economic operation through targeted process control

TO THE MEASUREMENTS

Industrial Wastewater Treatment Plants

Water is an essential component in most production processes. The process water is often contaminated, which is why it is necessary to treat industrial wastewater in a wastewater treatment plant. Due to the diverse chemicals used in the process, process analytics is particularly important. Excessive concentrations of toxic chemicals can cause the biology in aeration basins to die and shut down the wastewater treatment plant.

This results in high costs for the company, as the wastewater has to be collected and temporarily stored until the industrial wastewater treatment plant is operational again. To prevent these complications and losses from occurring in the first place, Variolytics measurement technology for industrial wastewater treatment plants intervenes at an early stage. By monitoring wastewater in real time and in continuous operation in the inlet of the biological treatment stage, the Variolytics system ensures the right composition between biology and chemistry. The treatment plant meets the specific requirements due to the occurrence of different compositions of volatile organic compounds, ammonia and dissolved gas concentrations. At the same time, the processes of the industrial wastewater treatment plant are optimized and energy costs, as well as the use of chemicals in the treatment of wastewater, are significantly reduced.

Advantages of wastewater monitoring for Industrial Treatment Plants

Quality assurance

Save costs (energy costs & chemical consumption)

Pollutant monitoring (e.g. chloroform)

Sample Measurements

In the following section, measurements previously performed in the laboratory with our liquid analyzer Vario one. are shown. The liquid inlet of the membrane inlet mass spectrometer allows substances to be measured directly and online from the liquid. A standard membrane is used. Select the substance of which you want to view the measurement. Then the corresponding experiment is displayed with all results and data. Click through the interactive graphs to view individual measurement points.

Greenhouse Gas Measurements

Wastewater processing in sewage treatment plants produces greenhouse gases that are harmful to the environment. The gases carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide are among the relevant emissions from wastewater treatment plants. In this context, nitrous oxide has a greenhouse gas effect almost 300 times greater than CO2. For 2018, the amount of direct emissions from municipal wastewater treatment was estimated at almost 1 million tons of CO2 equivalents; almost half of this can be attributed to nitrous oxide emissions. With the monitoring system from Variolytics, these relevant greenhouse gas emissions can be measured permanently online from the liquid and gaseous phase and their respective concentrations can be determined. Below you will find the measurements of nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Feel free to click through the measured gases and our associated interactive graphs.

Measuring

Nitrous Oxide

Sector

Industrial/Communal wastewater treatment plant

Key figures

Detection limit: < 1177 µg/L
Sensitivity: < 392 µg/L

Measuring task

Nitrous oxide is produced as a by-product of bacterial metabolism. Poor oxygen supply and high nitrate levels in wastewater are considered to be the main factors in nitrous oxide generation. The membrane inlet mass spectrometer records nitrous oxide concentration in real time.

Result

Conclusion

Based on the real-time measurement, an increase in nitrous oxide concentration is observed during fumigation in the liquid phase between 0 and 1.102 mg/L. Thereby, the sensitivity is more than 392 µg/L and the detection limit is more than 1177 µg/L.

Measuring

Methane

Sector

Industrial/Communal wastewater treatment plant

Key figures

Detection limit: < 200 µg/L
Sensitivity: < 67 µg/L

Measuring task

Methane is produced, for example, in wastewater treatment plants during the anaerobic decomposition of organic material. Since this substance is one of the greenhouse gases, it is necessary to keep the methane content as low as possible. By measuring methane, statements can also be made about the oxygen supply in the wastewater treatment plant.

Result

Conclusion

Based on the real-time measurement, an increase in methane concentration is observed in the liquid phase between 0 and 24 mg/L upon fumigation. Thereby, the sensitivity is at least 200 µg/L and the detection limit is at least 67 µg/L.

Measuring

Carbon dioxide

Sector

Industrial/Communal wastewater treatment plant

Key figures

Detection limit: < 892 µg/L
Sensitivity: < 297 µg/L

Measuring task

CO2 is produced indirectly by the generation of the electrical and thermal energy required to operate the wastewater treatment plant and directly by the biological conversion processes. Measurement of the substance is therefore mandatory for the reduction of greenhouse gases.

Ergebnis

Conclusion

By real-time measurement, CO2 can be detected in the liquid phase. Based on the real-time measurement, an increase in carbon dioxide concentration is observed in the liquid phase between 0 and 1.845 mg/L upon fumigation. Thereby, the sensitivity is at least 892 µg/L and the detection limit is at least 297 µg/L.

The effects of nitrous oxide

The impact of nitrous oxide (nitrous oxide) on global warming is significant. In fact, N₂O emissions have 273 times greater global warming potential than carbon dioxide (CO₂). This means that N₂O per molecule can bind heat in the atmosphere much more effectively than CO₂ and thus contributes significantly to the greenhouse effect. Given the significant impact of nitrous oxide on global warming, efforts to reduce these emissions are essential. These include optimizing wastewater treatment, reducing industrial emissions and improving agricultural practices.