Effect of Nutrient Removal and Resource Recovery on Life Cycle Cost and Environmental Impacts of a Small Scale Water Resource Recovery Facility
Citation:
Morelli, B., S. Cashman, Cissy Ma, J. Garland, J. Turgeon, L. Fillmore, D. Bless, AND M. Nye. Effect of Nutrient Removal and Resource Recovery on Life Cycle Cost and Environmental Impacts of a Small Scale Water Resource Recovery Facility. Sustainability. MDPI, Basel, Switzerland, 10(10):3546, (2018). https://doi.org/10.3390/su10103546
Impact/Purpose:
To provide comprehensive system evaluation of resource recovery design and showcase how resource recovery concept can be carried out so that both more environmental and economical benefits can be achieved. In the efforts of limiting the effluent impacts of eutrophication in receiving waterbodies, a small community wastewater treatment has implemented the upgrade of the conventional activated sludge treatment process with enhanced primary settling, Modified Ludzack-Ettinger secondary treatment, and anaerobic digestion (AD). The resource recovery hub concept was initiated with the intention of converting an energy-consuming WWTP into a facility that generates energy and water reuse. Life cycle assessment and cost analysis were used to evaluate the combined benefits and tradeoffs. The updated system reduced eutrophication impacts by 40% while other impacts such as global warming potential and cumulative energy demand were strongly affected by AD and composting emission scenarios. The high operational performance of AD, composting, and the acceptance of high strength organic waste would produce the highest reductions in environmental impacts relative to the legacy system. The environmental credits from effluent reuse, avoided fertilizer production from land application of biosolids, and the avoided burdens of grid electricity and natural gas production from recovered biogas would contribute more environmental benefits. When the capacity of AD was fully realized with high strength waste, the project net present values can be lower than the one in base case.
Description:
In the efforts of limiting the effluent impacts of eutrophication in receiving waterbodies, a small community wastewater treatment has implemented the upgrade of the conventional activated sludge treatment process with enhanced primary settling, Modified Ludzack-Ettinger secondary treatment, and anaerobic digestion (AD). The resource recovery hub concept was initiated with the intention of converting an energy-consuming WWTP into a facility that generates energy and water reuse. Life cycle assessment and cost analysis were used to evaluate the combined benefits and tradeoffs. The updated system reduced eutrophication impacts by 40% while other impacts such as global warming potential and cumulative energy demand were strongly affected by AD and composting emission scenarios. The high operational performance of AD, composting, and the acceptance of high strength organic waste would produce the highest reductions in environmental impacts relative to the legacy system. The environmental credits from effluent reuse, avoided fertilizer production from land application of biosolids, and the avoided burdens of grid electricity and natural gas production from recovered biogas would contribute more environmental benefits. When the capacity of AD was fully realized with high strength waste, the project net present values can be lower than the one in base case.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Effect of Nutrient Removal and Resource Recovery on Life Cycle Cost and Environmental Impacts of a Small Scale Water Resource Recovery Facility
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/10/3546
Free access through PubMed Central