How STP Works

Ref: www.kspcb.gov.in/STP-Guide-web(Med).pdf

Sewage Flow Diagram

Not covered
in this presentation!

Bar Screen Chamber

Apartments

Equalization tank

This is the first stage of STP. It separates debris and muck from the incoming sewage.
The sewage enters the chamber from the inlet 1.
The bar screen 4 traps debris 2. The muck 3 settles at bottom.
The filtered sewage 5 exits through outlet 6.
The STP operator must remove the debris and muck periodically, with a rake.
The removed debris is placed in a perforated tray 7, cleaned with water spray, and discarded.

Equalization Tank

Bar screen
chamber

Aeration tank

This tank acts as buffer: Most of the sewage comes to STP (through inlet 1) in the mornings
and evenings. But pump 3 moves the sewage to the next stage at a constant rate.
A feeder pipeline 6 feeds compressed air to an array of coarse diffusers 5.
Tiny bubbles rise out of these diffusers, and oxygenate the sewage, to prevent it from rotting.

Aeration Tank

Equalization tank

Clarifier tank

This is the heart of the STP: It contains bacterial culture that digests the sewage.
The filtered sewage 1 comes in at a constant rate. It remains in the tank for 16+ hours, where
bacteria digest the biodegradable content in sewage. A feeder pipeline 8 provides compressed
air to fine bubble diffusers 7. Tiny bubbles rising out of the diffusers keep the bacteria alive.
The treated sewage flows over the launder 4 at the far end, and exits at 6. The baffle plate 2
prevents the sewage from escaping directly from the inlet to the exit.
The next tank retrieves the bacterial culture from the outgoing sewage, and sends it back 9.

Clarifier/Settling Tank

Aeration tank

1/2

Filters

The purpose of this tank is to retrieve the bacterial sludge and send it back to aeration tank.
The sewage overflows at a constant rate from aeration tank, and taken through inlet 1 into a
center well 2. The bacterial sludge is heavier, so it sinks to the bottom gently, while the clear
water is lighter, so it rises to the top of the tank 8.
Due to the conical slope 3, the sludge gets concentrated at the center of the bottom 4. From
here, a pump 6 picks it up via suction pipe 5, and sends it back to aeration tank via delivery
pipe 7. The clear water 8 flows over the launders 9, and taken to the filters via outlet 10.

Clarifier/Settling Tank

Aeration tank

2/2

Filters

This is another variation of settling tank: Here, instead of an electrical pump, a compressed air
pump is used. All the other parts are same as before.
Compressed air is fed through pipeline 5. The suction cup 6 sucks the sludge from the bottom
of the tank, and delivers it through pipe 7 to the Aeration Tank.

Filters (PSF, ACF)

Flush water tank

Clarifier tank
RO stage
(optional)

These filters process the clear water that is decanted from sewage in the clarifier tank.

The water first passes through the Pressurized Sand Filter (PSF). Here, the suspended
particles are filtered out.

Then the water is passed through a second filter: The Activated Carbon Filter (ACF), where
any color and odor are removed through adsorption process.
Next, chlorine or ozone is injected in the water to disinfect it.
This process produces non-potable water.