Wastewater Engineering

Code

Course teacher

Associate teachers

Status of the course

Course objectives

Students will acquire knowledge in the field of wastewater engineering. They will become familiar with the calculation of the state of water ecosystems due to discharge of wastewater, pollution loading calculations, selecting the process and methods of wastewater treatment, the influence of various factors on the process, appropriate calculation procedure for process equipment capacity.

Course enrolment requirements and entry competences required for the course

Learning outcomes expected at the level of the course (4 to 10 learning outcomes)

It is expected that the outcome of learning to provide knowledge about:
- the impact of pollution on developments in aquatic ecosystems
- sources and characteristics of wastewater, the classification of harmful substances, calculation of pollution loading
- determination of the possible savings of fresh water and the formation of waste water using water pinch analysis
- selection procedures and methods for wastewater treatment
- stability and destabilization of colloids
- mechanisms of coagulation / flocculation
- application of aeration, neutralization, oxidation / reduction and chemical precipitation of wastewater treatment
- mechanism and kinetics of aerobic biological wastewater treatment
- methods of processing biological sludge
- application and significance of advanced wastewater treatment.

Course content broken down in detail by weekly class schedule (syllabus)

1 week: Introduction. The use of water. Hydrologic cycle. Water quality management. Water and Sustainable Development.
2 week: The aquatic ecosystem. Events in aquatic ecosystems. The consequences of pollution. Oxygen levels in the water. The kinetics of the aerobic decomposition of organic matter in water.
3 week: Wastewater. The origin of the waste water. Contamination and pollution of natural waters. Classification of harmful substances. Specific and nonspecific quality indicators. Sampling methodology. Pollution loading.
4 week: The steps of priorities in dealing with wastewater. A hierarchical approach. A holistic approach. Integration processes. Water pinch. A graphical method.
5 week: Wastewater treatment. Selection process and processing methods. Numerical examples.
6 week: Previous treatment stage. Screening, size reduction, equalization and flotation in waste water treatment.
7 week: Removing dispersed and colloidal particles. The separation of suspended solids from wastewater by gravity sedimentation. Designing the sedimentator. Coagulation and flocculation in wastewater treatment. Colloidal systems. Stability and destabilization of colloids. Mechanisms of flocculation.
8 week: Application of aeration in wastewater treatment. Neutralization, oxidation / reduction and chemical precipitation in wastewater treatment.
9 week: Biological processes for wastewater treatment. The factors of the biological activity of microorganisms. The types of microorganisms. The mechanism and kinetics of aerobic biological wastewater treatment. Calculating the parameters of running processes.
10 week: Disinfection of wastewater treatment. Sludge treatment.
11 week: Advanced wastewater treatment processes. Application of adsorption in wastewater treatment.
12 week: Application of ion exchange in wastewater treatment.
13 week. The application of membrane processes in wastewater treatment. Application of advanced oxidation processes in wastewater treatment.
14 week: Biological removal of nitrogen and phosphorus.
15. week: Constructed wetlands.
Laboratory exercises:
Exercises 1. Removal of zinc from waste water by neutralization and chemical precipitation. The construction of solubility diagram for the system Zn(OH)-H2O, and the determination of optimum pH for the precipitation of Zn(OH)2.
Exercises 2. Removal of zinc from waste water by neutralization and chemical precipitation. Calculation of addition of hydrated lime and material balance.
Exercises 3. Removal of iron from waste water by oxidation / reduction. Determination of rate constants of the oxidation process of Fe(II).
Exercises 4. Removal of colloidal particles dispersed in the water by coagulation / floculation. Test coagulation / flocculation of colloidal particles dispersed in the water jar test. Determination of the optimal addition of coagulant / flocculant.
Exercise 5. Characterization of waste water using oxygen as an indicator. Determination of chemical oxygen demand (COD) using Dichromate method. Determination of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) using Winkler method.
Exercise 6. The kinetics of biochemical degradation of organic matter. Datermination of rate constant and inital concentration of organic matter in wastewater.
Fieldtrips for visiting of wastewater treatment plants.

Format of instruction:

Student responsibilities

Attending lectures is 80%, while laboratory exercises and field work 100% of the total hours.

Optional literature (at the time of submission of study programme proposal)

J. Margeta, Oborinske i otpadne vode: teret onečišćenja i mjere zaštite, Sveučilište u Splitu, Građevinsko-arhitektonski fakultet, Split, 2007.
B. Tušar, Pročišćavanje otpadne vode, Kigen d.o.o. i Geotehnički fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Zagreb, 2009.
B. Tušar, Ispuštanje i pročišćavanje otpadne vode, Croatia knjiga, Zagreb, 2004.

Quality assurance methods that ensure the acquisition of exit competences

Quality assurance will be performed at three levels:
(1) University Level;
(2) Faculty Level by Quality Control Committee;
(3) Lecturer’s Level.

Other (as the proposer wishes to add)

Suggestions and reactions of participants during the semester.
Student survey.