KEY DETAILS
Technology: optAER® fine-bubble lagoon aeration (and associated process upgrades)
ADVANTAGES
- Effectively improves lagoon cBOD and TSS treatment
- Stops nuisance odors
- Reduces sludge by promoting internal digestion
APPLICATIONS
- Facultative lagoons/waste stabilization ponds
- Old or underperforming aerated lagoons
- cBOD removal
- TSS removal
- Algae control/pH stabilization
- Water Reuse
- Sludge reduction
CASE STUDIES
- Colesburg, Iowa
- Doaktown, New Brunswick
- Glencoe, Ontario
- Harrah, Washington
- Martensville, Saskatchewan
- Rocky Mountain House, Alberta
- Waterton National Park, Alberta
YOUR CHALLENGE: IMPROVE LAGOON BOD/TSS REMOVAL
Reduce BOD/TSS: Improve Biological Oxygen Demand and suspended solids removal performance to meet lower limits without constructing additional lagoons.
Increase capacity: Upgrade the lagoon to increase the design capacity of the system and accommodate new industrial contributions or community growth.
Reduce energy consumption: The old aeration is using a lot of power to little effect. Upgrade existing aeration with fine bubble aeration to reduce energy requirements.
Stop odors and sludge build-up: Nuisance odors spell trouble for a town’s aromatic aesthetic, while manual sludge removal spell trouble for its pocketbook.
Save space, time, and money: You’d like to do it on a compact footprint, and as usual, the simpler to operate and more inexpensive the solution, the better.
OUR TECHNOLOGY: OPTAER® FINE-BUBBLE LAGOON AERATION
The optAER system is an efficient pond-based wastewater treatment solution used in a broad spectrum of applications. In comparison to conventional mechanical treatment facilities, optAER process-enhanced lagoons maintain the simplicity of a lagoon system at a fraction of the cost to construct and operate.
Of course, aside from financial benefits, the documented performance of optAER systems make it a reliable solution for achieving high effluent quality and meeting increasingly stringent wastewater effluent regulations, especially when paired with our other lagoon-based process upgrades (including SAGR™ post-lagoon nitrification and infini-D™ Zero-Downtime Phosphorus Removal System).
The sludge digestion capability of the optAER process results in minimal long-term solids accumulation, extending the design life of the lagoons and allowing longer operation prior to de-sludging.
HOW IT WORKS
OPTIMIZING DISSOLVED OXYGEN AND RETENTION TIMES FOR MAXIMUM IMPACT
The focal point of the optAER® system is the fine-bubble aeration distributed through our diffusers placed at or near the lagoon bottom.
optAER fine-bubble aeration diffusers provides excellent operational flexibility they can operate in an airflow range between 5 to 25 SCFM. The airflow can be adjusted to accommodate variable load conditions and provide cost effective future upgrades to increase capacity.
The fine bubbles produced by the diffusers both rise more slowly (compared to traditional “coarse bubbles”) and result in high total surface area per volume of air introduced into the system, increasing the overall oxygen transfer efficiency of the system. The bubbles also mix the water, ensuring aerobic conditions throughout the water body.
The diffusers can be combined with self-tensioning floating laterals providing cost effective installation. For high diffuser density applications, Our patented Float-Sink retrievable header system that enables easy access to the headers and diffusers for routine maintenance. Installation and maintenance for both floating and float-sink lateral aeration systems can occur without de-watering the lagoon or taking cells out of service.
CONTROLLING ODORS
CBOD REDUCTION
SUSPENDED SOLIDS REMOVAL
SLUDGE REDUCTION
WHAT IT DELIVERS
REDUCING BOD/TSS TO <20MG/L WITH MINIMAL O&M
Turn your lagoon into a high-performance wastewater treatment plant with the addition of optAER® technologies. It’s amazing what such a simple-to-operate system can produce when paired with NEI’s fine-bubble aeration system and optional flow optimization baffles or lagoon cover. Add a SAGR™ post-lagoon nitrification and/or infini-D™ Zero-Downtime Phosphorus Removal system, and you have a wastewater treatment plant producing effluent that can exceed the effluent quality of more complicated wastewater treatment plants, with a fraction of the operational complexity or ongoing maintenance requirements.
FAQS
WILL OPTAER AERATION IMPROVE OUR AMMONIA LEVELS? – Very likely. The availability of dissolved oxygen is often a limiting factor for nitrification (ammonia removal), and the increased mixing that aeration can provide also helps ensure ammonia-rich wastewater comes in contact with nitrifying bacteria. But if you live somewhere that gets cold in the winter, remember that cold water can be a far more significant limiting factor than even dissolved oxygen, and if it’s ammonia removal you’re looking for, the SAGR is the answer.
IS DEWATERING REQUIRED FOR MAINTENANCE? – No, with most optAER configurations dewatering is not required for most of maintenance items, including inspecting diffusers and changing diffuser membranes, and desludging the ponds. Floating laterals allow diffusers to be accessed from the water’s surface, allowing individual diffusers or entire laterals to be inspected in a full lagoon.
WHAT SPECIAL EQUIPMENT IS REQUIRED FOR MAINTENANCE? – For most optAER systems, the most specialized equipment required for maintenance is a light, stable boat from which an operator can work. No barge or heavy lifting equipment is required.
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