Mathematical Modelling of Aerobic Digestion in Activated Sludge Process

Alomoy Banerjee[1], S Raghuraman[2]

[1]
M-Tech Design Engineering 1st Year, Department of Mechanical Engineering
[2]
Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Email: [1]alomoybanerjee@gmail.com 9874260328(M) [2
]
s.raghuraman@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in 8939080025(M)
Birla Institute of Technology & Science Pilani,  
Abstract
The scope of the paper involves developing a mathematical model that dynamically relates oxygen
transfer, pH, carbon dioxide & ammonia stripping, along with nitrite & nitrate production of sludge
water, by off gas testing method in the aeration tank. The mathematical model, calculates oxygen
transfer efficiency (OTE) of aerators and estimates hydraulic retention time of process water, in the
aerator tank for economic and efficient operation.
Keywords: activated sludge model, nitrification, oxygen transfer efficiency, dissolved oxygen, pH

Introduction
The activated sludge process is the most frequently used suspended growth process used for
municipal waste water treatment, because of its technical efficiency as well as economic viability. The
principle water treatment steps of an activated sludge plant include:

Fig 1-Activated Sludge Process in municipal waste water treatment

1. Waste water aeration in presence of microbial suspension

2. Solid liquid separation in clarifier
3. Discharge of treated effluent
4. Wastage of surplus biomass
5. Recycling of remaining biomass through aerator tank.
Sewage water primarily consists of carbonaceous organic compounds and nitrogenous waste products
in the form of ammonia. Both these components contribute to the biological oxygen demand (BOD)
of sewage water. Hence, for aerobic digestion of the organic & nitrogenous substrate, aeration
becomes an indispensable part of the activated sludge process. The efficiency of the aeration process,
termed as oxygen transfer efficiency (OTE) fluctuates, owing to the variation in quality of influent
waste water.
It is imperative for the aeration tank to be supplied with adequate oxygen in order to maintain the
population of aerobic bacteria, necessary to digest the substrate in sewage water. However, the
aeration of sewage water comes at the cost of power consumption from the aerators. Hence, keeping
the sludge water in the aeration tank for longer periods will actually reduce the efficiency of the
continuous stirred tank reactor, as the aerators will consume more power to treat the same volume of
sewage water. Therefore, it is important to predict the minimum number of days for which the sewage
water needs to be kept in the aerator tank, for complete aerobic digestion of the substrate.
Aerobic digestion of the substrate primarily occurs in two phases. The carbonaceous organic
compounds are first consumed by heterotrophic bacteria. The reaction rate is rapid and the reaction
conditions like pH, temperature and dissolved oxygen concentration are lenient. The next phase
involves the consumption of nitrogenous waste products by Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter in presence
of oxygen. Ammonia is initially converted into nitrite by Nitrosomonas, which in turn gets converted
into nitrate by Nitrobacter, to complete the aerobic digestion of nitrogenous waste product. The
conversion of ammonia to nitrate in the aerator tank takes the longest time and demands strict reaction
conditions that include strictly neutral pH, adequate dissolved oxygen, accurate sludge water
temperature and high sludge retention time.
Literature Review
Henze Mogens et al.[1] illustrates a summary of ASM1[2], ASM2, ASM2d and ASM3, thus
providing a comparative analysis between them. The book provides an exhaustive list of wastewater
characteristic, kinetic and stoichiometric constants that gives accurate results while mathematically
modelling the activated sludge system. Kirst V.Gernaey et al. [3] carried out an extensive review of
white box modelling techniques used in waste water treatment plants. The work combined AI
methodologies with modular agent based systems to deduce a calibrated mathematical model for
sewage water treatment plants. MIYATA Jun et al.[4] simulated a process model for oxygen ditch
facilities using IWA approved mathematical model ASM2D. Shao-Yuan Leu et al.[5] developed a
dynamic model to predict off gas mole fraction and backed up the simulation data with experimental
evidence, to establish the authenticity of the model. Wei Yao eta al.[6] developed a simplified version
of ASM1, based on Benchmark Simulation Model (BSM1). The model was verified by comparing the
COD values of simulation results and practical testing. G.C. Okpokwasili et al[7] carried out detailed
research on biodegradation kinetic models comparing Monod’s, Andrews, Bungay’s weighted model
and general substrate inhibition models (GSIM).
Chemical Reactions in Aeration Tank
There are four chemical reactions that occur in the aerator tank to oxidize the organic and nitrogenous
substrate of sewage water. The reactions are represented in the form of chemical equations below
I. The organic substrate reduction in sludge water due to the growth of heterotrophic bacteria is
represented by the following chemical equation
𝑏 𝑐 𝑏
𝐶 𝐻 𝑂 𝑌𝑁𝐻 𝑎 𝑂 → 𝑌𝐶 𝐻 𝑁𝑂 𝑎 5𝑌 𝐶𝑂 2𝑌 𝐻 𝑂 𝑌𝐻
4 4 2
II. Oxidation of ammonia to nitrite by Nitrosomonas is described by the following equation
3 13
𝑁𝐻 5𝑌 𝐶𝑂 𝑌 𝑂
2 2
→ 𝑌 𝐶 𝐻 𝑁𝑂 1 𝑌 𝑁𝑂 1 3𝑌 𝐻 𝑂 2 𝑌 𝐻
III. Oxidation of nitrite to nitrate by Nitrobacter is depicted by the following equation
1
𝑁𝑂 5𝑌 𝐶𝑂 3𝑌 𝐻 𝑂 7𝑌 𝑂 𝑌 𝐻 → 𝑌 𝐶 𝐻 𝑁𝑂 1 𝑌 𝑁𝑂
2
IV. Decay of bacterial biomass to production of carbon dioxide and ammonia at long sludge
retention time is illustrated by the following equation

𝐶 𝐻 𝑁𝑂 5𝑂 𝐻 → 5𝐶𝑂 2𝐻 𝑂 𝑁𝐻
 Monod Function
French scientist, Monod derived a function to represent the microbial growth kinetics in continuous
stirred tank reactor. The function takes into consideration microbial growth & decay rates, as well as
substrate concentration. The function is represented by
𝜇 𝑆
𝜇 𝐾 𝑋
𝐾 𝑆
In order to incorporate the influence of dissolved oxygen in microbial growth kinetics, double Monod
type growth rate kinetic function was developed by Produska. The double Monod function is
represented by
𝜇 𝑆 𝐷𝑂
𝜇
𝐾 𝑆 𝐷𝑂 𝐾
𝜇 = Maximum biomass growth rate S = Substrate concentration Ks = Half velocity coefficient

Kd = Decay Rate DO = Dissolved Oxygen Concentration 𝐾 = Half Saturation Coefficient

Sludge Recycle Rate

After aeration in the tank, as illustrated in figure 1, the effluent is separated in the clarifier and the
waste sludge is eliminated. The rest of the sludge water is recycled back to the aeration tank for
aeration along with fresh sewage water. The recycle rate of the sludge may be mathematically denoted
by
𝑄 𝑄 𝑄
𝑃 ∗
𝑉 𝑄
Q = Sludge flow rate from sewage tank Qw = Waste sludge flow rate QR = Recycle sludge flow rate

Governing Differential Equations

i. Substrate Concentration (S):
𝑑𝑠 𝑄 𝜇
𝑆 𝑆 𝑋
𝑑𝑡 𝑉 𝑌

ii. Biomass Concentration (X):

𝑑𝑋
𝑃 𝜇 𝐾 𝑋
𝑑𝑡

iii. Nitrosomonas Concentration (XNS):

𝑑𝑋
𝑃 𝜇 𝐾 𝑋
𝑑𝑡

iv. Nitrobacter Concentration (XNB):

𝑑𝑋
𝑃 𝜇 𝐾 𝑋
𝑑𝑡

v. Dissolved Oxygen Concentration (DO):

𝑑𝐷𝑂 𝑄
𝐷𝑂 𝐷𝑂 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾
𝑑𝑡 𝑉

vi. Carbon Dioxide Stripping (DCD)

𝑑𝐷𝐶𝐷 𝑄
𝐷𝐶𝐷 𝐷𝐶𝐷 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾
𝑑𝑡 𝑉
vii. Ammonia Stripping (NNH3)
𝑑N 𝑄
N N 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾
𝑑𝑡 𝑉

viii. Nitrite Oxidation (NNO2)

𝑑N 𝑄
N N 𝛾 𝛾
𝑑𝑡 𝑉

ix. Nitrate Formation (NNO3)

𝑑N 𝑄
N N 𝛾
𝑑𝑡 𝑉

x. Alkalinity (Z)
𝑑𝑍 𝑄 𝛾 𝛾 𝛾
𝑍 𝑍 𝛾
𝑑𝑡 𝑉 𝑀 𝑁
Solution Methodology of Governing Differential Equations
Assumptions:
1. The fundamental theorem of activated sludge model is based on mass conservation equation.
2. The reactor is assumed to be a continuous flow stirred tank reactor.
3. The clarifier separates liquid & solid completely.
4. All the chemical reactions occur only in the aeration tank
5. The clarifier is assumed to be a zero-volume container.

Solver:
The governing differential equations are solved in MATLAB using ode45. The numerical technique
used to solve the equations is explicit RKDP method, with adaptive step size integration algorithm.
Linear stability analysis is done to ensure the stability and convergence of the solution obtained.

Results and Discussion

Fig 2 – Simulation results of consumption of organic Fig 3- Simulation Results of Nitrification

substrate

Figure 2 demonstrates the decrease in substrate concentration over time. The rate of reaction depends
on the substrate concentration, according to Monod’s function. Hence, when the substrate
concentration was high initially, the rate of consumption by heterotrophic bacteria is high as well. As
the substrate concentration reduces, the reaction rate stabilizes.
Figure 3 illustrates three plots that depict the progress of the nitrification process. The concentration
of initial nitrogenous waste in sewage water, ammonia, reduces in two distinct phases. In phase 1, the
rate of decrease in concentration is steep, as initially, the heterotrophic bacteria consume ammonia to
increase its population. In phase 2, the growth rate dips to a gradual curve, as the ammonia is
gradually converted to nitrite, by Nitrosomonas. As stated above, nitrite is an intermediate product in
the nitrification process. The initial rise in Nitrosomonas concentration occurs because of the low
concentration of Nitrobacter to begin with. Then as the Nitrobacter population increases, the nitrite
concentration drops from its peak, along with the simultaneous increase in concentration of nitrate.
 Fig 4 – Simulation results of DO and DCD Fig 5 – Simulation results of pH

Fig 4 illustrates the change in dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide concentration over time. The
steep rise in carbon dioxide and the drop in dissolved oxygen in the initial phase of the reaction is
because of the rapid consumption of organic substrate by heterotrophic bacteria. This phase consumes
oxygen and generates carbon dioxide. The increase in carbon dioxide concentration then drops down
to a gradual slope, as a portion of it starts getting consumed by Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter. Finally
the generation and usage of both CO2 & O2 reach a steady state, which gets maintained through the
rest of the reaction.
In Fig 5, the pH varies between 7 & 8, the ideal pH that is required for aeration of sewage water. As
explained above, the drop in pH is due to the generation of H+ ions during oxidation of organic
substrate. The rise in pH after 1-2 days is primarily because of the consumption of H+ ions in the
formation of nitrate. Finally the pH stabilizes and maintains a strict pH closest to 7, that aids the
nitrification process.
Conclusion
A mathematical model simulating the several components in an activated sludge wastewater treatment
process was developed. The target components or properties include carbonaceous pollutants
(substrate), nitrogenous pollutants (ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate), heterotrophic bacteria
concentration, nitrifying bacteria (Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter) concentrations, gas and liquid phase
oxygen concentrations, gas and liquid phase carbon dioxide concentrations, alkalinity, and pH.
From the above figures, it can be inferred that the minimum number of days for which the sewage
water needs to be stored in the aerator tank for complete consumption of organic & inorganic
substrate is 8 days. After 8 days, all the chemical processes, as inferred from the graphs above,
stabilize, thus allowing the water to move to the clarifier.
The efficiency of oxygen transfer through the aerators is calculated to be 14.66%, which is within the
stipulated range of OTE (10-15%) of standard aerators.

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