Wastewater treatment, also called sewage treatment, the removal of impurities from wastewater, or sewage, before it reaches aquifers or natural bodies of water such as rivers, lakes, estuaries, and oceans. Since pure water is not found in nature (i.e., outside chemical laboratories), any distinction between clean water and polluted water depends on the type and concentration of impurities found in the water as well as on its intended use. In broad terms, water is said to be polluted when it contains enough impurities to make it unfit for a particular use, such as drinking, swimming, or fishing. Although water quality is affected by natural conditions, the word pollution usually implies human activity as the source of contamination. Water pollution, therefore, is caused primarily by the drainage of contaminated wastewater into surface water or groundwater, and wastewater treatment is a major element of water pollution control.
Wastewater treatment is a process that aims to remove contaminants and wastewater and convert the water into clean water that can be returned to the water cycle . The clean water produced by this process has less negative impact on the environment and can be reused for various purposes (called water reclamation). The treatment process is carried out at a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), a place where wastewater is separated and treated by type. For domestic wastewater, treatment is carried out at a sewage treatment plant . For industrial wastewater, treatment is carried out in a special place called an industrial wastewater treatment plant . Several other types of treatment plants include agricultural wastewater treatment plants treatment leachate.
The processes involved in this treatment such as phase separation (such as sedimentation) and chemical and biological processes (such as oxidation). The by-product of the wastewater installation is one type of sludge which is then reprocessed at the installation. Biogas is also a by-product of processing if the processing uses an anaerobic process . The main objective of wastewater management is to reduce the environmental impact when it is discharged. However, some wastewater is treated with special treatment so that it can be reused immediately.
Water pollutants may originate from point sources or from dispersed sources. A point-source pollutant is one that reaches water from a single pipeline or channel, such as a sewage discharge or outfall pipe. Dispersed sources are broad, unconfined areas from which pollutants enter a body of water. Surface runoff from farms, for example, is a dispersed source of pollution, carrying animal wastes, fertilizers, pesticides, and silt into nearby streams. Urban storm water drainage, which may carry sand and other gritty materials, petroleum residues from automobiles, and road deicing chemicals, is also considered a dispersed source because of the many locations at which it enters local streams or lakes. Point-source pollutants are easier to control than dispersed-source pollutants, since they flow to a single location where treatment processes can remove them from the water. Such control is not usually possible over pollutants from dispersed sources, which cause a large part of the overall water pollution problem. Dispersed-source water pollution is best reduced by enforcing proper land-use plans and development standards.
General types of water pollutants include pathogenic organisms, oxygen-demanding wastes, plant nutrients, synthetic organic chemicals, inorganic chemicals, microplastics, sediments, radioactive substances, oil, and heat. Sewage is the primary source of the first three types. Farms and industrial facilities are also sources of some of them. Sediment from eroded topsoil is considered a pollutant because it can damage aquatic ecosystems, and heat (particularly from power-plant cooling water) is considered a pollutant because of the adverse effect it has on dissolved oxygen levels and aquatic life in rivers and lakes.
Wastewater treatment and disposal
The size and capacity of wastewater treatment systems are determined by the estimated volume of sewage generated from residences, businesses, and industries connected to sewer systems as well as the anticipated inflows and infiltration (I&I). The selection of specific on-lot, clustered, or centralized treatment plant configurations depends upon factors such as the number of customers being served, the geographical scenario, site constraints, sewer connections, average and peak flows, influent wastewater characteristics, regulatory effluent limits, technological feasibility, energy consumption, and the operations and maintenance costs involved.
The predominant method of wastewater disposal in large cities and towns is discharge into a body of surface water. Suburban and rural areas rely more on subsurface disposal. In either case, wastewater must be purified or treated to some degree in order to protect both public health and water quality. Suspended particulates and biodegradable organics must be removed to varying extents. Pathogenic bacteria must be destroyed. It may also be necessary to remove nitrates and phosphates (plant nutrients) and to neutralize or remove industrial wastes and toxic chemicals.
The degree to which wastewater must be treated varies, depending on local environmental conditions and governmental standards. Two pertinent types of standards are stream standards and effluent standards. Stream standards, designed to prevent the deterioration of existing water quality, set limits on the amounts of specific pollutants allowed in streams, rivers, and lakes. The limits depend on a classification of the “maximum beneficial use” of the water. Water quality parameters that are regulated by stream standards include dissolved oxygen, coliforms, turbidity, acidity, and toxic substances. Effluent standards, on the other hand, pertain directly to the quality of the treated wastewater discharged from a sewage treatment plant. The factors controlled under these standards usually include biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), suspended solids, acidity, and coliforms.
There are three levels of wastewater treatment: primary, secondary, and tertiary (or advanced). Primary treatment removes about 60 percent of total suspended solids and about 35 percent of BOD; dissolved impurities are not removed. It is usually used as a first step before secondary treatment. Secondary treatment removes more than 85 percent of both suspended solids and BOD. A minimum level of secondary treatment is usually required in the United States and other developed countries. When more than 85 percent of total solids and BOD must be removed, or when dissolved nitrate and phosphate levels must be reduced, tertiary treatment methods are used. Tertiary processes can remove more than 99 percent of all the impurities from sewage, producing an effluent of almost drinking-water quality. Tertiary treatment can be very expensive, often doubling the cost of secondary treatment. It is used only under special circumstances.
For all levels of wastewater treatment, the last step prior to discharge of the sewage effluent into a body of surface water is disinfection, which destroys any remaining pathogens in the effluent and protects public health. Disinfection is usually accomplished by mixing the effluent with chlorine gas or with liquid solutions of hypochlorite chemicals in a contact tank for at least 15 minutes. Because chlorine residuals in the effluent may have adverse effects on aquatic life, an additional chemical may be added to dechlorinate the effluent. Ultraviolet radiation, which can disinfect without leaving any residual in the effluent, is becoming more competitive with chlorine as a wastewater disinfectant.