Anaerobic Sewage Treatment using UASB Reactors

Anaerobic Sewage Treatment using UASB Reactors1Chapter4AnaerobicSewageTreatmentusingUASBReactors:EngineeringandOperationalAspectsJulesB.vanLier1,AnandVashi2,JeroenvanderLubbe3andBarryHeffernan31FacultyofCivilEngineeringandGeosciences,DepartmentofWaterManagement,DelftUniversityofTechnology,TheNetherlands2EnviroControlAssociates(I)PVT.LTD.Opp.BankofMahashtra,GhodDodRoad,Surat-395001,Gujarat,India3BiothaneSystemsInternational,Tanthofdreef21,2600GBDelft,TheNetherland.j.b.vanlier@tudelft.nlAnaerobicpre-treatmentofdomesticsewageusingUASBreactorsystemsoffersanumberofadvantages,e.g.systemcompactness,negligibleornoenergyconsumption,stabilisedexcesssludgeproduction,potentialforenergyrecovery,low-costaccessibilityofsewageforagriculturalreusepurposes,etc..Researchonhigh-rateanaerobicsewagetreatmentstartedintheearly1980swiththe64m3UASBpilotplantinCali,ColombiaandvariousotherinitiativesinBrazil.Hereafterthetechnologywasadaptedtofull-scaleconditionsandslowlyintroducedinthemarket.Thischapterdescribest