A process and system for treating wastewater is described. The invention degrades sludge produced by treatment of the wastewater to reduce or eliminate the need for sludge dewatering and disposal. The invention also reduces the amount of nutrient additives required to sustain the aerobic wastewater treatment process. In one embodiment the invention includes the steps of (a) providing an aerobic treatment system receiving a supply of the wastewater; (b) treating a supply of the sludge to rupture microbial cells present therein to produce treated sludge having an increased liquid:solid ratio and an increased degradation potential in comparison to untreated sludge; (c) conveying a supply of the treated sludge to the aerobic treatment system; and (d) substantially degrading the supply of treated sludge in the aerobic treatment system. The treated sludge may optionally be subjected to anaerobic digestion prior to delivery to the aerobic treatment system.

A process in which a waste stream containing microbes and organic constituents is passed through a process environment comprising a solid media, microbes, and higher animals, such that some of the microbes and/or organic constituents within the waste stream are removed from the waste stream and some of the removed microbes are destroyed or consumed by the higher animals. The process environment may include an irrigated environment, a submerged environment, or a combined environment.

A method for enhancing biochemical water treatment by a powder carrier includes: (i) screening the powder carrier by removing impurities to obtain a screened powder carrier; (ii) dissolving the screened powder carrier by stirring to prepare a slurry, enabling the screened powder carrier to completely absorb moisture to obtain a soaked powder carrier slurry; (iii) adjusting the pH value and adding the soaked powder carrier slurry into a bioreactor or a biological reaction structure; (iv) distributing the soaked powder carrier slurry uniformly through a hydraulic agitation; (v) loading a microorganism on the inner pore and wrapping on the surface of the soaked powder carrier slurry to obtain powder-loaded biological floccules; (vi) settling the powder-loaded biological floccules in a sedimentation zone and separating the powder carrier from the microorganism for reuse.

A flow through aerobic granular sludge (AGS) system includes a flow through reactor. The flow through reactor includes a first adsorption zone and first and second unaerated and aerated zones and may include a wastewater distribution system and a selector zone. The first adsorption zone includes AGS granules and may include a mixing device. The first and second unaerated zones are under anaerobic, anoxic, or both anaerobic and anoxic conditions and each may include a mixing device. The first and second aerated zones are under aerobic conditions and each may include an aeration device. The flow through reactor is configured such that the wastewater and AGS granules in the first adsorption zone flow continuously from the first adsorption zone through the first unaerated zone, the first aerated zone, the second unaerated zone, the second aerated zone, and optionally to the selector zone and out of the flow through reactor.

A wastewater treatment system including an aeration unit, a contact tank, a dissolved air flotation unit, and a biological treatment unit is disclosed. A method of retrofitting a wastewater treatment system by providing an aeration unit and fluidly connecting the aeration unit to the wastewater treatment system is also disclosed. A method of treating wastewater including aerating wastewater with oxygen, combining the aerated wastewater with activated sludge, floating biosolids from the activated wastewater, and biologically treating the effluent is also disclosed. The method optionally includes combining the floated biosolids with the aerated wastewater and/or activated wastewater. A method of facilitating treatment of high solids content wastewater is also disclosed.

The present disclosure belongs to the technical field of sewage treatment, and discloses a method and system for enhanced culture of aerobic granular sludge. The system includes a reaction tank, a water inlet and outlet unit, an aeration unit, and a sludge discharge unit. The water inlet and outlet unit includes a water inlet pump, a water inlet electric valve, a liquid flowmeter, a sewage uniform distribution treatment device, buffers, a water drainage pipe, and a water drainage electric valve. The aeration unit includes a blower, microporous aerators, and a gas flowmeter. The sludge discharge unit includes sludge discharge pumps, a sludge discharge pipe, a sludge discharge electric valve, and a sludge concentration meter. In the present disclosure, a multi-point uniform water distribution method is used. When the flow rate of influent water is adjusted, sewage slowly and uniformly flows through a sludge layer from the bottom of the system, so that the concentration of organic matter in raw water is prevented from being rapidly reduced by rapid single-point water intake, the utilization rate of the organic matter in the sewage is increased to the maximum extent, and the efficiency of the system is improved.

An efficient and low-cost process for gravity thickening and fermentation of waste activated sludge withdrawn from the surface of an activated sludge aeration basin for use with treatment systems designed for “enhanced biological phosphorus removal” (EBPR). One or more reactor tanks are used for the process with the steps of: A fill cycle, in which the waste mixed liquor flows into the tank, followed by a settle cycle, in which the mixed liquor is allowed to settle for a period of time, followed by a decant cycle, in which the clear liquid is withdrawn. The withdrawal of a volume of the settling mixed liquor for discharge is then followed by a ferment period for the remaining settled mixed liquor solids and a transfer of the fermented mixed liquor solids back to the activated sludge liquid stream process.

Described herein are attached growth reactor systems which increase nitrifying bacteria biomass through a variety of means during warm weather. As a consequence, the attached growth reactor system contains sufficient nitrifying bacteria biomass to remove ammonia from wastewater in cold to moderate climates. In one example, there are two attached growth reactors into which wastewater is distributed discontinuously. Specifically, wastewater is transferred to the first attached growth reactor for a first period of time and then is transferred to the second attached growth reactor for a second period of time during warm weather which effectively doubles the nitrifying bacteria biomass in the system. During cold weather, wastewater can be applied to the reactors according to their increased nitrifying bacteria biomass, that is, according to their increased capacity to treat influent wastewater compared to standard operations.

A reactor for the biological treatment of wastewater, includes a chamber capable of containing a mixture of wastewater and sludge comprising various levels, each level being defined by a sludge concentration and/or density; means for determining a minimum level and a maximum level of sludge extraction in the chamber, comprising: measurement means capable of measuring the sludge concentration and/or density at various levels of a mixture of wastewater and sludge; selection means capable of selecting a maximum sludge concentration and/or density value and a minimum sludge concentration and/or density value; deduction means capable of deducing a minimum extraction level corresponding to the maximum concentration value selected and a maximum extraction level corresponding to the minimum concentration value selected; extraction means capable of extracting sludge at variable levels between the minimum extraction level and the maximum extraction level.

Described herein is aerobic granular sludge gravity-driven membrane system, methods of making and using thereof are described. The aerobic granular sludge (AGS) integrated with a gravity-driven membrane (GDM) filtration system is an energy efficient wastewater treatment system that takes advantage of AGS reactor systems integrated with gravity-driven membrane system to reduce membrane fouling and produce microbiologically and chemically safe water. The AGS-GDM system includes at least an AGS reactor tank containing raw wastewater and granular sludge and a membrane tank including one or more gravity-driven membrane(s).