The invention relates to the design of an enclosure for a membrane aeration module, which incorporates a reversible, low-pressure, air-lift pump to encourage a vertical water flow through and between the membranes in the module. These enclosed membrane modules are suitable for use in membrane aerated biofilm reactors, which are used to treat water or wastewater.

In an immersed membrane system, the influent flows into an open membrane tank. The membrane tank can have multiple horizontally spaced immersed membrane units. The immersed membrane units may have flat sheet membrane elements within a membrane case. One or more ducts are provided in the tank for directing the flow of influent to the immersed membrane units. In some examples, the influent is divided into sub-streams that are fed through baffles to a corresponding immersed membrane unit, optionally in generally equal amounts, optionally in a single pass flow pattern. In a process of operating a membrane tank, the influent flow is directed across the bottom of the membrane tank and divided into multiple portions. Each of the multiple portions is fed directly to the bottom of a corresponding immersed membrane unit located in the tank. The influent may be mixed liquor in a membrane bioreactor (MBR).

An organic wastewater treatment apparatus is operated by switching between a first operation mode and a second operation mode. The first operation mode includes supplying organic wastewater to a dual-use tank and performing an anaerobic treatment process therein, performing a nitrification-denitrification process in a membrane bioreactor treatment tank, and extracting membrane-permeated water from a membrane separation device arranged in the membrane bioreactor treatment tank as treated water. The second operation mode includes supplying the organic wastewater to the dual-use tank and performing an aerobic treatment process therein, supplying mixed liquid containing activated sludge from the dual-use tank to both of the membrane bioreactor treatment tank and a sedimentation tank, performing a nitrification-denitrification process in the membrane bioreactor treatment tank, extracting membrane-permeated water from the membrane separation device arranged in the membrane bioreactor treatment tank as treated water, and also extracting solid-liquid separated liquid from the sedimentation tank as treated water.

Provided is an effluent treatment method based on a membrane separation activated sludge method, the effluent treatment method being characterized in that activated sludge collected from a membrane separation activated sludge tank is observed by an optical means, image processing is performed, and effluent treatment conditions are controlled in accordance with the results thereof.

A membrane element includes a filtration membrane and a flowpath member joined thereto. The flowpath member is made of yarn arranged into a three-dimensional structure, and includes inner spaces through which a permeated liquid permeated through the filtration membrane flows, and an outer bonding surface joined to the filtration membrane. At least part of the yarn forming the outer bonding surface is a low-melting point yarn having a softening point lower than that of a material forming the filtration membrane, or the yarn forming the outer bonding surface is formed by twisting a plurality of constituent yarns, and at least one of the constituent yarns is a low-melting point yarn having a softening point lower than that of the material forming the filtration membrane.

Provided is a method for cleaning a filtration membrane provided in a membrane filtration device that is immersed in a liquid to be treated and performs solid-liquid separation on the liquid to be treated. When a transmembrane pressure difference exceeds a first predetermined pressure difference P1, a first cleaning step W1 for cleaning a filtration membrane is performed using a first chemical solution; when the transmembrane pressure difference immediately after performing the first cleaning step W1 exceeds a second predetermined pressure difference P2 that is lower than the first predetermined pressure difference, a second cleaning step W2 for cleaning the filtration membrane is performed using a second chemical solution having a concentration higher than the first chemical solution; and when the second cleaning step W2 is performed, the concentration of the second chemical solution and/or the cleaning time is changed according to the temperature of the liquid to be treated.

A method the filtering a liquid in a membrane filter immersed in the liquid and including membranes, the method including introducing a gas through a gas introduction device into a base of the membrane filter in successive pulses so that the membranes are cleaned wherein the gas introduction device includes a liquid flow channel which vertically penetrates a gas collection cavity and admits the liquid into a bottom of membrane filter; and initially filling a gas volume arranged below a free surface of the liquid and defined in a downward direction by an enclosed level of the liquid with the gas wherein the gas simultaneously displaces the liquid top down from a gas lifting channel until the enclosed level of the liquid drops below an inlet cross section of a gas flow out channel; and subsequently.

A membrane filter configured to filter a liquid, the membrane filter including a base element including at least one membrane carrier that is externally flowable by the liquid and a gas; hollow fiber membranes respectively including lumen and attached at a top of the at least one membrane carrier wherein a liquid permeate is filterable from the liquid into the lumen; a one piece extruded circumferentially closed pipe that envelops the hollow fiber membranes; a gas inlet configured to let gas into a bottom of the membrane filter; at least one permeate collection cavity included in the base element and connected with the lumen and configured to collect the liquid permeate from the hollow fiber membranes; a permeate outlet included in the base element and configured to drain the liquid permeate from the at least one permeate collection cavity laterally from the base element.

A water treatment method treats raw water (water to be treated) containing organic wastewater. The method includes (i) an aeration process performs an initial absorption treatment by aerating the water to be treated, (ii) a filtration process for filtering the water to be treated which has been treated by the initial absorption treatment in the aeration process, (iii) a digestion treatment process for digesting solids captured by the filtration process, (iv) a biological treatment process for denitrifying, with activated sludge, filtered water obtained through the filtration process, (v) a sludge transfer process for sending the activated sludge from the biological treatment process to the aeration process, and (vi) an adjustment process for adjusting an amount of the activated sludge sent to the aeration process via the sludge transfer process based on a nitrogen concentration of treated water which has been biologically treated by the biological treatment process.

A wastewater filter assembly has a base, a filter module or casing, modular filter plates disposed in said filter module or casing atop the base, a header disposed on the filter module, tie rods each coupled at a lower end to the base, and tensioning elements removably connected to upper ends of the tie rods to fix the tie rods to the filter module and press the filter plates into relative rigid relationship. The tie rods are disposed in laterally open elongate channels extending along vertical edges of the filter module. The tie rods, upon a loosening or removal of the respective tensioning elements, can be shifted at least partially in a horizontal direction out of the laterally open elongate channels and laterally away from the filter module.