Pilot Plant Study on Biological Treatment of Domestic Sewage Using Biopipe System

The Biopipe system is the first biological wastewater treatment system designed to remove carbonaceous and nitrogenous substances entirely within a pipe. The transformation mechanisms in the Biopipe system can be modelled using a physical model, and several experiments have been carried out to this study. The experimental work was carried out at the Al-Barakia wastewater treatment plant (BWWTP) in Iraq’s Najaf governorate that will be done to obtain continuous source of sanitary sewage flow and thus, maintain the pilot plant operation. Two tanks, two pumps, a Flow Control and Measuring Device, PVC Pipes, and an Aeration System make up the physical model. Seeding using activated sludge from a similar plant, The Biopipe system requires 28 days to get steady results and maximal COD, TN and TSS removal efficiency. The tests were carried out on a Biopipe system with recirculation with different value of influent flow rate and different recirculation ratio. The most important findings of the Biopipe system application indicated that system is better for removing COD than TN. When the recirculation ratio was equal to 9, the removal efficiency of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total nitrogen (TN) achieved 66.50% respectively. The dissolved oxygen concentration rises to 5.75 mg/l when the recirculation flow rate is increased to 216 m3/day. In addition, it was found that the removal efficiency of biodegradable organics can be enhanced in case of low influent flow rate and high recirculation flow rate.