Optimización energética de las lagunas aireadas de la planta de tratamiento de aguas residuales de Ucubamba

Abstract

ABSTRACT The aerated lagoons in Cuenca's Ucubamba Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), has been an important challenge to ETAPA EP since its beginnings because of the huge energetic resources attached to the operation of the 22 aerators installed in each lagoon. This research project analyzes in depth the energetic cost of these settings and studies and the distribution of dissolved oxygen (DO) contributed by the aerators in the lagoon through experimental campaigns, in order to raise possible operation settings to optimize the energetic cost without affecting the WWTP’s. To achieve this, we gathered and analyzed the historical behavior of concentrations and loads of BOD, COD, solids, and dissolved oxygen curves compared with injected aeration power in the lagoon. The experimental campaigns gathered DO distribution information in the lagoon, building DO distribution maps that allow to analyze the distribution of this parameter along the aerated lagoon through different operation settings. Later, an analysis of the energy and economic expenditure, aeration capacity and flow patterns of each one of the settings was carried out together with an analysis of previous studies carried out in the lagoon. The results show a great influence of the hydraulic pattern on the DO distribution, and propose an operation scenario that provide more stable conditions to maintain a healthy biomass in the lagoon and also cause an energy and economic optimization to the headquarters of Ucubamba’s WWTP