Aerated Lagoon Technology

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• Acknowledgements
  This site is maintained as an informational resource guide for operators of lagoon systems and for those those that are interested in water pollution control via wastewater lagoons systems.
   
• Website Mission
  The mission of the Maine Lagoon Systems website is to promote clean water resources through the enhanced communication of wastewater lagoon system operators in the state of Maine and beyond.
   
• Search this Site
  Perform a complete search on the Maine Lagoon Systems website to locate specific information or articles that you may be looking for on the operation and maintenance of wastewater lagoon systems.
   
• Wastewater Treatment Links
  Worldwide Wastewater Web Resources
   
• Design and Operation of Wastewater Lagoons
  Lagoons are pond-like bodies of water or basins designed to receive, hold, and treat wastewater for a predetermined period of time. If necessary, they are lined with material, such as clay or an artificial liner, to prevent leaks to the groundwater below.
   
  • General Concepts
    Lagoons and ponds refer broadly to basins constructed in, or on the ground surface, using earthen dikes to retain the wastewater within which natural stabilization processes occur with the necessary oxygen coming from atmospheric diffusion, photosynthetic and/or mechanical sources. More specifically, there are anaerobic lagoons, facultative ponds, complete mix aerated ponds, partial mix aerated ponds and various hybrids. The following discussion is limited to facultative ponds, complete mix aerated lagoons, and partial mix aerated lagoons.
    
    Design and Operation of Wastewater Sewage Lagoons
    Lagoons and ponds refer broadly to basins constructed in, or on the ground surface, using earthen dikes to retain the wastewater within which natural stabilization processes occur with the necessary oxygen coming from atmospheric diffusion, photosynthetic and/or mechanical sources. More specifically, there are facultative stabilization ponds, complete mix aerated ponds, partial mix aerated lagoons, anaerobic lagoons and various hybrids. In Maine most of the lagoons and ponds are partial mix aerated lagoons and facultative stabilization ponds. This manual addresses the design, operation, and regulatory control of municipally operated partial mix aerated lagoons and stabilization ponds and is intended to be a tool for operators, engineers and regulators.
     
    • Maine Lagoons Executive Summary
      In 1994, a Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) staff committee was formed to evaluate the performance of lagoons and ponds. The DEP staff presented its findings and recommendations at a public workshop on October 24, 1995. During that workshop, several issues were identified and workshop participants agreed that a task force should be established to resolve the issues.
       
      • General Concepts II
        Biochemcial Interactions - Photosynthesis is the process whereby organisms are able to grow utilizing the sun's radiant energy to power the fixation of atmospheric C02 and subsequently provide the reducing power to convert the C02 to organic compounds. The following represents the biochemical reactions that occur during photosynthesis and respiration by algae.
         
• Sewage Lagoon Aeration
  Wastewater lagoon aeration represents one of the most energy intensive operations in the wastewater treatment system, consuming between 50 and 90% of the total energy costs of a typical municipal treatment facility.
   
  • Aeration - A Wastewater Treatment Process
    The aeration segment in these systems is the most critical component and is the core of their biological treatment process. A lagoon systems ability to aerate the incoming sewage has a direct impact on the level of wastewater treatment it achieves.
     
    • Coarse Bubble Static Tubes
      Course bubble static tubes create bubbles ( photo of coarse bubble aeration pattern to the left ) by pushing air through a series of baffles that break up the air flow into bubbles.
       
      • Fine Bubble Aerators
        Fine bubbles are much more efficient at transferring air because they create a larger transfer surface area per unit volume of added air. While coarse bubble diffusion efficiency may have an OTE of 0.75% per foot of pond depth, fine bubble systems may have an OTE of up to 2% per foot.
         
        • Choosing the Right Aeration System for Sewage Lagoons
          Would your wastewater treatment plant benefit by replacing an older aeration system such as coarse bubble diffusion with fine bubble technology?
           
          • Floating Aerators for sewage lagoons and ponds.
            Motor driven, mechanical aerators provide a combination of liquid aeration and mixing. Some mechanical aerators produce the gas - liquid interface by entraining air from the atmosphere and dispersing it into bubbles.
• Aerated Lagoon Technology
  Aerated lagoon technology, especially that of high-performance systems, is one of the most misunderstood technology in wastewater treatment.
   
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 1 - Effluent BOD5
    A MISLEADING PARAMETER FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF AERATED LAGOONS TREATING MUNICIPAL WASTEWATERS
    In spite of the fact that effluent BOD5 is a key parameter in many discharge permits for aerated lagoons, it is the most misleading.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 2 - Aerated Lagoon Effluents
    There are two great myths in aerated lagoon technology. The first myth is that effluent BOD5 measures the biodegradable carbonaceous material in the effluent.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 3 - Control of Algae
    Algae growing in an aerated lagoon system will increase both the TSS and the CBOD5 of the effluent. In systems treating municipal wastewaters, the effluent TSS and CBOD5 will often be many times that which would occur if the algae had not been present.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 4 - Nitrites and Their Impact on Effluent Chlorination
    Chlorination of secondary treatment effluents is some times impaired by an immediate chlorine demand exerted by nitrites. Such a demand is erratic and can be so large as to prevent maintaining a chlorine residual regardless of the dosage.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 5 - Aerated Lagoons for Secondary Treatment
    Historically, effluent data for aerated lagoons treating municipal wastewaters have been expressed in terms of BOD5 and TSS. This is unfortunate.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 6 - Nitrification in Aerated Lagoons and with Intermittent Sand Filters
    This technical note considers the fundamentals of nitrification and the removal of ammonia in aerated lagoons.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 7 - Mixed Liquor Recycle Lagoon Nitrification System
    As was discussed in Technical Note 6, during warm summer months, some nitrification generally occurs in most aerated lagoons. However, such nitrification is usually unpredictable and cannot be depended upon to meet effluent limits, especially during the winter months.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 8 -  Facultative Lagoons: A Different Technology
     It is useful to consider the differences between the technology and performance of facultative lagoons as they have been used to treat domestic wastewaters with those of the high performance aerated lagoons discussed in Technical Note Number 5.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 9 - Sludge Accumulation of High Performance Aerated Lagoon Systems
    Both sludge accumulation rates and solids contents are important factors in the rational design of high-performance lagoons.
     
  • Aerated Lagoon Technology Technote 10 - Ammonia feedback in the Sludge Basin of a CFID Nitrification System
    The discharge of the reactor basin through the sludge basin in a continuous flow, intermittent discharge (CFID) nitrification system is predicated on the assumption that there is no feed back of ammonia from the bottom sludge deposit to the over lying water column (See Technical Note Number 7).

   

• Cold Temperature Nitrification Using Ringlace
  Enhanced Cold Temperature Nitrification in a Municipal Aerated Lagoon Using Ringlace Fixed Film Media
   
• Nitrification Basics for Wastewater Lagoons
   
• Municipal Wastewater Lagoon Phosphorus Removal
  Phosphorus is essential to the growth of organisms and can be the nutrient that limits the primary use of a body of water.
   
• Pushing the Limits of Cold Temperature Nitrification
  Concerns about cold temperature nitrification usually arise when water temperature in the biological treatment system drop 5 degrees Celsius or below. At this temperature the nitrifying bacteria responsible for oxidizing ammonia tend to go dormant. If this happens, it usually means effluent violations for those plants with ammonia limits.
   
• Lagoons in Maine
   

  • Anson, Maine
    Ashland, Maine

  • Canton, Maine
    Caribou, Maine
    Clinton, Maine
    Carrabassett Valley, Maine
    Dexter, Maine
    Dover Foxcroft, Maine
    Eagle Lake, Maine
    Fort Kent, Maine
    Frenchville, Maine
    Great Salt Bay, Maine
    Guilford, Maine
    Howland, Maine
    Jackman, Maine
    Limerick, Maine
    Marshill, Maine
    Mattawamkeg, Maine
    Millinocket, Maine
    Milo, Maine

    • Milo, Maine

  • Greenville, Maine
    Newport, Maine
    North Berwick, Maine
    Norway, Maine
    Patten, Maine
    Pittsfield, Maine
    Rangeley, Maine
    Sanford, Maine

    • Sanford, Maine

    • Sanford, Maine

  • Sinclair, Maine
    Bethel, Maine
    Thomaston, Maine
    Unity, Maine
    Warren, Maine
    Waldoboro, Maine
    Washburn, Maine

  • Sanford, Maine
     

• Environmental Wastewater Laboratory Procedures and Methods
  Tim Loftus has been the Chief Chemist and Industrial Pretreatment Coordinator at the Webster-Dudley Wastewater Treatment Facility in Massachusetts since 1988.
   
  • Chain of Custody Procedure
    The chain-of-custody procedure incorporates a number of controls to assure the integrity of a sample. These procedures, along with the required written documentation, provide you with the necessary backing to defend the integrity of the sample in any litigation – whether it is to resolve an NPDES issue or an Industrial Pretreatment Program one.
     
  • Acidity and Alkalinity
    Acidity levels in wastewater indicate its corrosive properties and can take a leading role in regulating biological processes as well as in chemical reactions (such as chemical coagulation and flocculation). Alkalinity, too, contributes to the properties of wastewater, many of which also affect biological processes (such as nitrification) and chemical reactions.
     
  • BOD Test Part 1
    Legend has it that the 5-day BOD (Biological Oxygen Demand) test was developed in England. Sewage was dumped in a river and it took five days for it to reach the ocean, hence the five-day incubation requirement in the BOD method.
     
  • BOD Test Part 2
    This article will cover additional techniques and hints to get accurate and valid BOD results
     
  • BOD Test Part 3
    This third and final article in the series will focus on the results of BOD analyses.
     
  • Chemical Storage
    Included in this article are some general recommendations for storing laboratory chemicals. It is not a complete list and should only serve as a starting point in making your laboratory a safer place to work.
     
  • Ecoli
    The fecal coliform group and E. coli (which is one specie of bacteria in the fecal group) are used as indicator organisms to test the effectiveness of effluent disinfection in a wastewater treatment plant.
     
  • Method Detection Limits
    There are several different types of detection limits depending what is being defined. However, the method detection limit (MDL) is the only one designed to be determined in your laboratory using your chemicals, equipment, and technicians.
     
  • pH
    Out of all the analytical measurements taken throughout every branch of science and process control, pH analyses are probably the most common. In the wastewater field pH analyses are important for neutralization, corrosion control, precipitation, coagulation, and biological treatment.
     
  • Sample Contamination
    Good sample results start with good sampling, and one of the major components of good sampling is clean equipment
     
  • Standard Operating Procedures
    SOPs, or Standard Operating Procedures, should be part of every wastewater treatment laboratory. These are instructions on how to perform a variety of tasks including, but certainly not limited to, procedures for analytical analyses, sample collection, reporting and data transfer, the testing frequency of quality control samples, and equipment calibration and maintenance.
     
  • Significant Digits
    Measure it with a micrometer, mark it with a chalk line, then cut it with an axe. You probably experience some form of this every day. It’s common to mix analytical instrumentation, glassware, and reagents that have varying degrees of accuracy.
    
    Signs of Toxicity
    A toxic waste in a treatment plant will not always kill off the whole system. It may not even lead to an NPDES permit violation. But it will lead to reduced treatment efficiency and inefficient plants are not only more difficult to operate, they are more expensive to run.
     
  • Total Suspended Solids
    TSS, or total suspended solids, seems like an easy and innocent enough test to perform. For the most part, it is. But are you following this test procedure as it should be followed?
     
  • Quality Control Samples
     James Dux, Ph.D. describes quality control in his book, Handbook of Quality Assurance for the Analytical Chemical Laboratory, as “those operations undertaken in the laboratory to ensure that the data are generated within known probability limits of accuracy and precision.” In other words, it is the stuff that you do that shows whether your lab results are most likely right.
     
• Sewage Lagoon Biology
  Microorganisms found in aerated and facultative ponds are more diverse than those observed in many other biological treatment processes, due to the diverse growth environments present. Both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria are involved as well as algae and some higher life forms such as protozoans, rotifers, daphnia, and insect larvae.
   
• Resources
  Over time some lagoon operators have gained expertise in certain areas. If you are having any problems in any of these areas and would like to talk to someone knowledgeable in these subjects, the following guide will help you. The information for this table was gathered in a 1996 survey of lagoons performed by the Maine Lagoon Task Force.
   
• Biosolids
  The proper utilization and disposal of sludge is one of the most critical issues facing wastewater treatment plants today. Soaring budgets, difficulties in site selection, and the changing nature of regulations combine to create major problems for our treatment plants. This page is intended to give the reader a basic overview of some of the different options available to plants for sludge management.
   
  • Biosolids Composting
    Simply stated, composting is the biological decomposition of the organic constituents of wastes under controlled conditions. The term "decomposition" is used instead of "stabilization", because when applied to a practical usage, the process is rarely carried on to the point at which the waste is completely stabilized.
     
    • Utilizing the Bullhead
      The introduction of hundreds of bullhead into his ponds did significantly reduce the large accumulation of sludge on the lagoon floors.
       
    • Land Application of Biosolids
       Land application is the application of biosolids to the land to either condition the soil or to fertilize crops or other vegetation grown in the soil. Nearly half the biosolids production in the United States is currently being used beneficially to improve soils.
       
    • Sludge Removal
      As biomass accumulates, the mass settles to the bottom of the lagoon creating a layer of sludge. This layer of sludge is monitored periodically for depth. While this layer is accumulating, the solids are undergoing aerobic and anaerobic digestion to the point where only inert solids remain.
       
    • Reedbeds
      The proper utilization and disposal of sludge is one of the most critical issues facing wastewater treatment plants today. Nearly all wastewater treatment plant operators face the problem of storing and disposing biosolids.
       
• Maine DEP Contacts
   
• Lagoon Terminology
   
• Trouble Shooting

• TMDL on The Penobscot River
  Watershed-based decision-making has become increasingly important in the development of discharge permits throughout the nation. Numerous states have reorganized their water quality planning and permitting sections along watershed boundaries to coordinate data collection, facilitate analysis, and synchronize permit issuances, including development of Total Daily Maximum Loads (TMDLs) for impaired waters identified under Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 303(d).
   
• Operations Forum
  Operators of small rural treatment systems join forces to hold lagoon training sessions.