Application - Phosphorus Removal

Chemical Phosphorus Removal

Phosphorus does not have a gaseous form, so it must be converted from soluble form to particulate form for removal. Chemical phosphorus removal uses iron or aluminum compounds to combine with and precipitate out phosphate.

Biological Phosphorus Removal

Biological phosphorus removal utilizes Phosphate Accumulating Organisms (PAOs). In the anaerobic environment, the PAOs consume volatile fatty acid compounds, while they release phosphate into the water. In an aerobic environment, the PAOs consume more phosphate than they can digest, which results in a net removal of phosphorus from the wastewater. The PAOs settle in the secondary clarifier and are removed when the sludge is wasted.

Typically in chemical phosphorus removal, the flow weighted average phosphate is used to set a static dose. This will lead to over and under dosing which could waste money and cause a permit violation! Using real-time data to control dosing can significantly reduce the cost of chemical phosphorus removal.

In biological treatment, aeration can be 70% of a plant’s budget because most wastewater treatment plants play it safe by running their blowers full speed 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

Knowing your real-time phosphate levels is critical to save you money by reducing chemicals or deciding when to turn off the blowers. How would more frequent or real time monitoring help you see the BIG picture?

Measurement Solutions – What and How to Measure

Hach provides online instrumentation for real-time continuous monitoring as well as the complete lab solution.

Online Solutions

Phosphate	PHOSPHAX™ sc Analyzer
Dissolved Oxygen	Luminescent Dissolved Oxygen (LDO®) Sensor
Organics	UVAS sc Sensor
pH/ORP	pH/ORP Sensor
pH	pH Sensor
Sludge Level	SONATAX sc Probe
Suspended Solids/Turbidity	SOLITAX sc SS Wiper

Automatic Samplers

AS950 Samplers

Data Management Software

Hach Water Information Management Solutions

Lab and Portable Solutions

Instruments
Spectrophotometers	DR 1900 \| DR 3900™ \| DR 6000™
Colorimeters	DR 900 \| Pocket II
BOD	LBOD HQd Meters
Dissolved Oxygen	LDO® HQd Meters
ORP	ORP HQd Meters
pH	pH HQd Meter
Suspended Solids/Turbidity	TSS Portable
Chemistries
BOD	Reagents \| Supplies
Dissolved Oxygen	Test Kits
Phosphate	Reagents \| Standards \| Test Kits
pH	Test Kits \| pH Buffers
Total Phosphorus	Reagents \| Standards
Volatile Acids	Reagents
Multiple Nutrient Parameters	Reagents