SCHOOL OF BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

UNIT – I – SEWERAGE SYSTEM – SCI 1306

– SCIA1301

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 INTRODUCTION
SANITARY ENGINEERING:
It is defined as the branch of public health engineering deals with the collection, conveyance,
treatment and safe disposal of wastes for preventing the communicable diseases.
STAGES OF SANITARY ENGINEERING:
Conveyance of sewage
Collection of sewage
Treatment of sewage
Disposal of sewage

OBJECTIVES OF SANITARY ENGINEERING:

To maintain the environment and to prevent the effect of sewage to public health in general.

To prevent the effect of disposal of sewage on land or nearby water bodies from pollution.
To prevent the environment from mosquitoes, flies, bacteria etc.
To dispose the human excreta to a safe place before it starts decomposition.

SEWAGE:
It is a dilute mixture of the wastes of various types from the residential, public and industrial
places.
It includes sullage water and foul discharge from the water closets, urinals, hospitals, stables
etc.
STORM WATER:
It is the surface runoff obtained during and after the rainfall which enters sewers through
inlet.
Storm water is not foul as sewage and hence it can be carried in the open drains and can be
disposed off in the natural rivers without any difficulty.
SANITARY SEWAGE:
It is the sewage obtained from the residential buildings & industrial
effluents Establishments.
Being extremely foul it should be carried through underground conduits.
DOMESTIC SEWAGE:
It is the sewage obtained from the lavatory basins, urinals & water closets of houses, offices
& institutions.
It is highly foul on account of night soil and urine contained in it.
Night soil starts putrefying & gives offensive smell.
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It may contain large number of bacteria due to the excremental wastes of patients.
This sewage requires great handling &disposal.
INDUSTRIAL SEWAGE:
It consists of spent water from industries and commercial areas.
The degree of foulness depends on the nature of the industry concerned and processes
involved.
SEWERAGE SYSTEM:
The entire system of collection of sewage and conveyance of sewage to treatment units by
using sewers is called sewerage system.
The sewerage system carries two types of flow.
DRY WEATHER FLOW (DWF):
Domestic sewage and industrial sewage collectively, is called as DWF.
It does not contain storm water.
It indicates the normal flow during dry season.
WET WEATHER FLOW (WWF):
The flow of storm water is called WWF.
SULLAGE:
It is defined as the waste water from domestic buildings especially from bathrooms, kitchens
etc.
It is merely waste water and does not create any bad smell or odour.
SLUDGE:
It is the organic matter deposited in the sedimentation tank during treatment.
SEWERAGE:
The entire system of collecting, carrying & disposal of sewage through sewers is known as
sewerage.
SEWERS:
Sewers are underground pipes which carry the sewage to a point of disposal.
TRUNK SEWERS:
A trunk sewer is a one which collects the waste water or sewage from two or more main
sewers.

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MAIN SEWERS:
A main sewer is a one which collects the sewage from two or more sub main sewers.
SUB MAIN or BRANCH SEWERS:
A sub main or branch sewer is a one which collects the sewage from lateral sewers and
discharges into main sewer.
LATERAL SEWER:
The sewer collecting the sewage directly from the building and discharging to the branch
sewer is called lateral sewer.
COMBINED SEWER:
A sewer carries domestic sewage and storm water is called combined sewer.

SEWERAGE SYSTEMS
Separate system of sewage
Combined system of sewage
Partially combined or partially separate system

SEPARATE SYSTEM OF SEWERAGE:

In this system two sets of sewers are laid.
The sanitary sewage is carried through sanitary sewers while the storm sewage is carried
through storm sewers.
The sewage is carried to the treatment plant and storm water is disposed of to the river.
ADVANTAGES:
Size of the sewers are small
Sewage load on treatment unit is less
Rivers are not polluted
Storm water can be discharged to rivers without treatment.

DISADVANTAGES:

Sewerage being small, difficulty in cleaning them.

Frequent choking problem.
System proves costly as it involves two sets of sewers.

The use of storm sewer is only partial because in dry season the will be converted in to
dumping places and may get clogged.
COMBINED SYSTEM OF SEWAGE:
When only one set of sewers are used to carry both sanitary sewage and surface water.

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This system is called combined system.
Sewage and storm water both are carried to the treatment plant through combined sewers.
ADVANTAGES:
Size of the sewers being large, chocking problems are less and easy to clean.
It proves economical as 1 set of sewers are laid.
Because of dilution of sanitary sewage with storm water nuisance potential is reduced.
DISADVANTAGES:
Size of the sewers being large, difficulty in handling and transportation.
Load on treatment plant is unnecessarily increased.
It is uneconomical if pumping is needed because of large amount of combined flow.
Unnecessarily storm water is polluted.
PARTIALLY COMBINED OR PARTIALLY SEPARATE SYSTEM:
A portion of storm water during rain is allowed to enter sanitary sewer to treatment plants
while the remaining storm water is carried through open drains to the point of disposal.
ADVANTAGES:
The sizes of sewers are not very large as some portion of storm water is carried through open
drains.
Combines the advantages of both the previous systems.
Silting problem is completely eliminated.
The problem of disposing storm water from houses is simplified.
DISADVANTAGES:
The quantity of storm water admitted in sewer may increase the load on pumping and
treatment units.
The velocity of flow is low in dry weather.
SUITABLE CONDITIONS FOR SEPARATE SEWERAGE SYSTEMS: -
A separate system would be suitable for use under the following situations:
Where rainfall is uneven.
Where sanitary sewage is to be pumped.
The drainage area is steep, allowing to runoff quickly.
Sewers are to be constructed in rocky strata. The large combined sewers would be more
expensive.

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SUITABLE CONDITIONS FOR COMBINED SYSTEM: -
Rainfall in even throughout the year.
Both the sanitary sewage and the storm water have to be pumped.
The area to be sewered is heavily built up and space for laying two sets of pipes is not
enough.
Effective or quicker flows have to be provided.

METHODS OF COLLECTION
The sanitation of a town or city is done by two methods:
Conservancy system
Water Carriage system

SOURCES OF SEWAGE
SANITARY SEWAGE IS PRODUCED FROM THE FOLLOWING SOURCES:
When the water is supplied by water works authorities or provided from private sources, it is
used for various purposes like bathing, utensil cleaning, for flushing water closets and urinals
or washing clothes or any other domestic use.
The spent water for all the above needs forms the sewage.
Industries use the water for manufacturing various products and thus develop the sewage.
Water supplied to schools, cinemas, hotels, railway stations, etc., when gets used develops
sewage.
Ground water infiltration into sewers through loose joints.

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Unauthorized entrance of rain water in sewer lines.

QUANTITY OF SANITARY SEWAGE AND STORM WATER

The determination of sanitary sewage is necessary because of the following factors which
depend on this:
To design the sewerage schemes as well as to dispose a treated sewage efficiently.
The size, shape and depth of sewers depend on quantity of sewage.
The size of pumping unit depends on the quantity of sewage.
FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUANTITY OF SANITARY SEWAGE FLOW: -
Rate of water supply
Population
Type of area served as residential, industrial or commercial
Infiltration and exfiltration
RATE OF WATER SUPPLY:
The rate of sewage may be 60 to 70 percent of water supply due to various reasons such as
consumption, evaporation, use in industries etc.
This may be changes daily, seasonal and also standard of living of people.
POPULATION:
As the population increases the quantity of sewage also increases because the consumption of
water is more.
TYPE OF AREA SERVED:
The quantity of sewage depends upon the type of area as residential, industrial or
commercial.
The quantity is depending on population if it is residential, type of industry if it is industrial,
Commercial and public places can be determined by studying the developing of other such
places.
INFILTRATION AND EXFILTRATION:
Infiltration is the leakage of water from the ground surrounding the sewer.
Exfiltration is the leakage of sewage from the sewer into the ground surrounding the sewer.
The quantity of water increased through infiltration depends on the following factors:
 Length of sewer
 Size of sewer
 Sub soil water head

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 Nature and type of soil.
FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUANTITY OF STORM WATER FLOW: -
Intensity of rainfall
Catchment areas
Duration of rainfall
ESTIMATION OF QUANTITY OF STORM WATER: -
Rational method
Empirical Method

DESIGN OF SEWERS
Average daily flow = (70 – 80) % average water consumption
i.e. Average Daily Flow (ADF) of Sewage = 75%
Maximum Daily Flow = 1.5 x ADF
RATIONAL METHOD:
According to this method, the run off Q depends on the following factors,
Catchment area (A)
Intensity of rainfall (R)
Impermeability factor or Run-off co-efficient (I)
Quantity of storm water, Q = C i A
360
TIME OF CONCENTRATION:
It is defined as the total time required by the flow to reach to the maximum limit.
The addition of inlet time and flow time gives the time of concentration.
tc = ti + tf
INLET TIME (ti ):
The time required by the storm water to reach the uppermost inlet of the sewer line known as
the inlet time or time of entry.
FLOW TIME (tf ):
The time taken by the storm water to flow down the sewer upto a particular point of
consideration is known as time of flow.
R or i = 25.4 a / tc + b
Where, R or i = intensity of rainfall in mm/hr.
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When tc is 5 to 20 minutes, constant a = 30 and b = 10.
When tc is 20 to 100 minutes, constant a = 40 and b = 20.
PROBLEMS
1.The catchment area of a city is 200 hectares. Assuming that the surface on which the
rainfalls is classified as follows: Calculate the impervious factor. If the maximum intensity of
rainfall is 40 mm/hour. Calculate the quantity of storm water which will reach the sewer
lines.

TYPE OF SURFACE % AREA RUNOFF CO-EEFICIENT

Roofs 20 0.9

Pavement and Yards 15 0.8

Lawns and Gardens 30 0.15

Macadamised Roads 20 0.40

Vacant Plots 15 0.10

Solution:
Impervious factor, i = A1 C1 + A2 C2 + ……. + An Cn
A1 + A2 + ……… + An
= 200 (0.2X0.9 + 0.15X0.8 + 0.3X0.15 + 0.2X0.4 + 0.15X0.10)
200 (0.2 + 0.15 + 0.30 + 0.20 + 0.15)
i = 0.44
Quantity of storm water, Q = C i A = 0.44 X 40 X 200
360 360
Q = 9.778 m3/sec.
2. In the above example if the density of population is 300 persons/hectare and the rate of
water supply is 250 litres/capita/day, Calculate the quantity of sanitary sewage for i) separate
system and ii) for partially separate system.
Solution:
i) Quantity of sanitary sewage for separate system,
Quantity of water supplied = 200 X 300 X 250 = 15 X 106 litres/day
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 15 X 106 / (24 X 3600) = 173.6 litres/sec.
But peak discharge for design purpose will be twice of this, 173.6 X 2 = 347 litres/sec.
Quantity of sanitary sewage for partially separate system,
= Quantity of sanitary sewage for separate system + Storm water drained from
roof and pavement yards
Quantity of storm water, Q = C i A = 200 (0.2 X 0.9 + 0.15 X 0.8) X 40
360 360
= 6.67 m3/sec = 6.67 X 103 litres/sec.
Quantity of sanitary sewage for partially separate system = 173.6 + 6.67 X 103
= 6843.5 litres/sec. or
= 6.843 X 103 litres/sec.
3.Estimate the storm water from 10 hectares of a surface having the following characteristics
if the maximum rain intensity in the area is 5 cm/hr.

TYPE OF SURFACE % RUNOFF CO-EEFICIENT

AREA
Roofs 30 0.9

Pavement 10 0.85

Paved Yards 5 0.80

Lawns and Gardens 25 0.10

Macadamised Roads 25 0.40

Thick vegetation 5 0.05

Solution:
Impervious factor, i = A1 C1 + A2 C2 + ……. + An Cn
A1 + A2 + ……… + An
= 10 (0.3X0.9 + 0.1X0.85 + 0.05X0.8 + 0.25X0.1 + 0.25X0.4 + 0.05X0.05)
200 (0.3 + 0.1 + 0.05 + 0.25 + 0.25 + 0.05)
i = 0.5225
Quantity of storm water, Q = C i A = 0.5225 X 50 X 10
360 360
Q = 0.7257 m3/sec.
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4. A combined sewer of circular section is to be laid to serve a particular area. Design the
sewer from the following:
Area to be served = 100 hectares
Population = 90000
Impermeability factor = 0.50
Time of entry = 3 min.
Time of flow = 17 min.
Rate of water supply = 240 lpcd. Assume any other data if necessary.
Solution:
Average Discharge = 90000 X 240 = 250 litres/sec.
24 X 60 X 60
Maximum Discharge = 2 X Average Discharge
= 2 X 250 = 500 litres/sec = 0.5 m3/sec.
tc = ti + tf = 3 + 17 = 20 min.
R = 25.4 a / tc + b = 25.4 X 30 / 20 X 10
R = 25.4 mm/hr.
Q= CiA = 0.50 X 25.4 X 100
360 360
Q = 3.52 m3/sec.
Total Sewage = Dry Weather Flow + Wet Weather Flow
=0.5 + 3.52
= 4.02 m3/sec.
Q =AXV
A =Q/V =4.02/3
A=1.34m2

A = π X d2 = 1.34
4
d2 = 1.34 X 4 / π = 1.706 d = 1.306 m.

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 DESIGN PERIOD
The future period for which the provision is made in designing the capacities of the various
components of the sewerage scheme is known as the design period.
The design period depends upon the following:
Ease and difficulty in expansion.
Amount and availability of investment.
Anticipated rate of population growth, including shifts in communities, industries and
commercial investments.
Hydraulic constraints of the systems designed, and
Life of the material and equipment.
Following design period can be considered for different components of sewerage scheme:
Trunk or main sewers: 40 to 50 years
Treatment Units: 15 to 20 years
Pumping plant: 5 to 10 years

FLUCTUATIONS IN SEWERS
The sewage flow, like the water supply flow, is not constant in practice but varies.
The fluctuation may, in a similar way, be seasonal or monthly, daily and hourly.
Fluctuation in flow occurs from hour to hour and from season to season.
The seasonal variations are due to climatic effect, more water being used in summer than in
winter.
The daily fluctuations are the outcome of certain local conditions, involving habits and
customs of people.
Thus, in U.S.A. and other European countries, Monday is the washing day, as such, amount
of sewage flow would be much greater than on any other day.
In India, however, Sundays or other holidays involve activities which permit greater use of
water.
Hourly variations are because of varying rates of water consumption in different hours of the
day.
The first peak flow generally occurs in the late morning it is usually about 200 percent of the
average flow while the second peak flow generally occurs in the early evening between 6 and
9 p.m. and the minimum flow occurring during the night after twelve or early hours of the
morning is generally about half of the average flow.

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 HYDRAULICS OF SEWERS
SELF CLEANSING VELOCITY:
The sewers should be laid at such a gradient that a minimum velocity, which will prevent the
silting of particles in sewers are developed. Such a minimum velocity is known as self-
cleansing velocity.
Self-cleansing velocity is generally,
0.6 m/s for sanitary sewer
1m/s for storm sewer.
NON-SCOURING VELOCITY:
The upper limit of velocity is set by scouring action of sewage.
If the velocity of flow exceeds a certain limit, the particles of solid matter start to damage the
inside surface of sewers or in other words, a scouring action takes place.
The maximum permissible velocity at which no such scouring action will occur is known as
non-scouring velocity and it mainly depends on the material of sewers.
Generally,
Sanitary sewer = 2.4 m/sec
Storm sewer = 3 m/sec

SHAPES OF SEWERS
Circular sewer section
Non circular sewer section
CIRCULAR SEWER SECTION:
Sewers are generally circular in shape.
The sewers are running at least half full.
If the depth in a circular sewer is less than one-half, there is considerable reduction in
velocity and discharge and it results in poor performance.
ADVANTAGES OF CIRCULAR SEWERS:
The perimeter of circular sewer is the least with respect to the sewer of other shape.
The inner surface is smooth hence the flow of sewage is uniform and there is no chance of
deposition of suspended particles.
From hydraulic point of view, circular section provides more hydraulic mean depth.
Construction cost and material requirement is less.
Non-circular shaped sewers are also adopted for the following reasons:
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They can be construct in such a convenient shape and size so that a man can enter the sewer
for cleaning, maintenance, etc.
The process of construction is easy.
The structural strength is more.
Cost of construction is low.
NON-CIRCULAR SEWER SECTIONS:
Standard Egg Shape
New Egg Shape
Horse Shoe Shape
Parabolic Shape
Semi Elliptical Shape
Rectangular Shape
U- Shaped
Semi Circular Shape
Basket Handle Shape
STANDARD EGG SHAPE
It is preferred for combined sewers.
Its advantage over circular shape is that it gives higher velocity during low flow of same
capacity.
It is difficult to construct and less stable.
It requires additional bedding of brick masonry or concrete to make it stable.

Figure No.1
HORSE SHOE SHAPED SEWER:
This may be used for large sewers with heavy discharges such as for trunk and outfall sewer.
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Such sewer is suitable when headroom for the construction of sewer is limited.
The invert of this section may be flat, parabolic or circular.
Its height is more than its width.
Its wall most inclined with semicircular arch at top.

Figure No.2

PARABOLIC SHAPED SEWER:

The upper arch of the sewer forms the shape of parabola.
This may be used for carrying comparatively small quantities of sewage.
The invert may be elliptical or parabolic.
It is found to be economic in construction.

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 Figure No.3

SEMI ELLIPTICAL SHAPED SEWER:

It may be used for soil i.e. soft soil as it is more stable.

It is useful only for carrying large number or amounts of sewage.

It is adopted when sewers are greater than 1.8m in diameter.

Figure No.4

RECTANGULAR SHAPED SEWER:

Generally, it is used for covered storm water drains.
It is stable and easy to construct.
Sometimes it is used to work as a storage tank.
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 Figure No.5
U SHAPED SEWER:
The section may have true shape of letter ‘U’, or a small trench of
U-Shape can be set up in the large section.
That trench is known as cunette.
Such type of sewer used for combined sewer having maximum flow of storm water.
It is used for longer sewers and especially in open cuts.

Figure No.6
SEMI CIRCULAR SHAPED SEWER:
This section gives a wider base at bottom and hence it becomes suitable for
constructing large sewers with less available headroom.
It is out dated.

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 Figure No.7

BASKET HANDLE SHAPED SEWER:

In this type of sewer, the upper portion of sewer has got the shape of a basket- handle.
The bottom portion is narrower in width than the upper portion.
It carries small discharge through the bottom narrow portion and during monsoon it runs full.
It is also out dated.

Figure No.8
FACTORS CONSIDERED WHILE SELECTING MATERIAL FOR SEWER

Resistance to corrosion
Resistance to abrasion
Strength and durability
Weight of the material

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Imperviousness
Economy and cost
Hydraulically efficient

RESISTANCE TO CORROSION:
Sewer carries wastewater that releases gases such as H2S.
This gas in contact with moisture can be converted in to sulfuric acid.
The formation of acids can lead to the corrosion of sewer pipe.
Hence, selection of corrosion resistance material is must for long life of pipe.

RESISTANCE TO ABRASION:
Sewage contain considerable number of suspended solids, part of which are inorganic solids
such as sand or grit.
These particles moving at high velocity can cause wear and tear of sewer material.
This abrasion can reduce thickness of pipe and reduces hydraulic efficiency of the sewer by
making the interior surface rough.

STRENGTH AND DURABILITY:

The sewer pipe should have sufficient strength to withstand all the forces that are likely to
come on them.
Sewers are subjected to considerable external loads of backfill material and traffic load, if
any.
They are not subjected to internal pressure of water.
To withstand external load safely without failure, sufficient wall thickness of pipe or
reinforcement is essential.
In addition, the material selected should be durable and should have sufficient resistance
against natural weathering action to provide longer life to the pipe.

WEIGHT OF THE MATERIAL:

The material selected for sewer should have less specific weight, which will make pipe light
in weight.
The lightweight pipes are easy for handling and transport.
IMPERVIOUSNESS:
To eliminate chances of sewage seepage from sewer to surrounding, the material selected for
pipe should be impervious.

ECONOMY AND COST:

Sewer should be less costly to make the sewerage scheme economical.

HYDRAULICALLY EFFICIENT:
The sewer shall have smooth interior surface to have less frictional coefficient.

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 SEWER MATERIALS
Asbestos Cement (AC) Sewer
Brick Sewer
Cement Sewer
Cast iron (C.I) Sewer
Steel Sewers
Plastic Sewers
Vitrified Clay or Stoneware Sewers
Lead Sewers

ASBESTOS CEMENT SEWERS:

Asbestos Cement (AC) Sewers are manufactured from a mixture of cement and asbestos
fiber.
Asbestos Cement (AC) Sewers are suitable for carrying domestic sanitary sewage.
Asbestos fibers are thoroughly mixed with cement to act as reinforcement.
These pipes are available in size 10 to 100 cm internal diameter and length up to 4.0 m.
These pipes can be easily assembled without skilled labour with the help of special coupling,
called ‘Ring Tie Coupling’ or Simplex joint.
The pipe and joints are resistant to corrosion.
These pipes are used for vertical transport of water. For example, transport of rainwater from
roofs in multistoried buildings, for transport of sewage to grounds, and for transport of less
foul sullage i.e., wastewater from kitchen and bathroom.

ADVANTAGES OF ASBESTOS CEMENT (AC) SEWER

Smooth.
Light in weight.
Can easily be cut, fitted and drilled.
Durable against soil corrosion.

DISADVANTAGES OF ASBESTOS CEMENT (AC) SEWER

Brittle cannot withstand heavy loads.
They are easily broken in handling and transport.

BRICK SEWERS:
Brick Sewers are made at site and used for construction large size sewer.
Brick Sewers are very useful for construction of storm sewer or combined sewer.
Nowadays brick sewers are replaced by concrete sewer.
Brick sewers my get deformed and leakage may take place.
A lot of labour work is required.
To avoid leakage the brick sewer should be plastered.
This material is used for construction of large size combined sewer or particularly for storm
water drains.

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The pipes are plastered from outside to avoid entry of tree roots and ground water through
brick joints.
These are lined from inside with stone ware or ceramic block to make them smooth and
hydraulically efficient.
Lining also make the pipe resistant to corrosion.

CEMENT CONCRETE SEWERS:

PCC - for dia up to 60 cm
Suitable for small storm drains.
Not durable.
RCC - for dia > 60 cm
They may be cast in situ or precast, resistant to heavy loads, corrosion and high pressure.
These are very heavy and difficult to transport.
These pipes can be cast in situ or precast pipes.
Precast pipes are better in quality than the cast in situ pipes.

ADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE PIPES:

Strong in tension as well as compression.
Resistant to erosion and abrasion.
They can be made of any desired strength.
Easily moulded, and can be in situ or precast pipes.
Economical for medium and large sizes.
These pipes are available in wide range of size and the trench can be opened and backfilled
rapidly during maintenance of sewers.

DISADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE PIPES:

These pipes can get corroded and pitted by the action of H 2SO4.
The carrying capacity of the pipe reduces with time because of corrosion.
The pipes are susceptible to erosion by sewage containing silt and grit.

CAST IRON (C.I) SEWERS:

These types of sewer are High strength and durability water tight.
Cast Iron sewers can withstand high internal pressure and can bear external load.
These pipes are stronger and capable to withstand greater tensile, compressive, as well as
bending stresses.
However, these are costly.
Cast iron pipes are used for outfall sewers, rising mains of pumping stations, and inverted
siphons, where pipes are running under pressure.
These are also suitable for sewers under heavy traffic load, such as sewers below railways
and highways.
They are used for carried over piers in case of low-lying areas.
They form 100% leak proof sewer line to avoid ground water contamination.

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They are less resistant to corrosion; hence, generally lined from inside with cement concrete,
coal tar paint, epoxy, etc.
These are joined together by bell and spigot joint.
Cast Iron sewers are suitable for the following conditions:
When the sewage is conveyed under high pressure.
When there is considerable difference in temperature.

STEEL SEWERS:
Steel sewers are Impervious, light, resistant to high pressure, flexible.
They are generally used for outfall and trunk sewers.
These are used under the situations such as pressure main sewers, under water crossing,
bridge crossing, necessary connections for pumping stations, laying pipes over self-
supporting spans, railway crossings, etc.
They can withstand internal pressure, impact load and vibrations much better than CI pipes.
They are more ductile and can withstand water hammer pressure better.
These pipes cannot withstand high external load and these pipes may collapse when negative
pressure is developed in pipes.
They are susceptible to corrosion and are not generally used for partially flowing sewers.
They are protected internally and externally against the action of corrosion.

PLASTIC SEWERS:
Nowadays PVC sewers are used for carrying sewage.
Plastic sewers are resistant to corrosion.
Such types of sewer are light in weight, smooth and can be bent easily.
But Plastic sewers are having high co-efficient of thermal expansion and cannot be used in
very hot areas.
Plastic is recent material used for sewer pipes.
These are used for internal drainage works in house.
These are available in sizes 75 to 315 mm external diameter and used in drainage works.
They offer smooth internal surface.
The additional advantages they offer are resistant to corrosion, light weight of pipe,
economical in laying, jointing and maintenance, the pipe is tough and rigid, and ease in
fabrication and transport of these pipes.
High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Pipes Use of these pipes for sewers is recent
development.
They are not brittle like AC pipes and other pipes and hence hard fall during loading,
unloading and handling do not cause any damage to the pipes.
They can be joined by welding or can be jointed with detachable joints up to 630 mm
diameter.
These are commonly used for conveyance of industrial wastewater. They offer all the
advantages offered by PVC pipes. Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastic Pipes This martial is
widely used where corrosion resistant pipes are required.

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GRP or FRP can be used as a lining material for conventional pipes to protect from internal
or external corrosion.
It is made from the composite matrix of glass fiber, polyester resin and fillers.
These pipes have better strength, durability, high tensile strength, low density and high
corrosion resistance.
These are manufactured up to 2.4 m diameter and up to 18 m length.

VITRIFIED CLAY OR STONEWARE SEWERS:

These pipes are used for house connections as well as lateral sewers.
The size of the pipe available is 5 cm to 30 cm internal diameter with length 0.9 to 1.2 m.
These pipes are rarely manufactured for diameter greater than 90 cm.
These are joined by bell and spigot flexible compression joints.

ADVANTAGES OF STONEWARE SEWERS:

Resistant to corrosion, hence fit for carrying polluted water such as sewage.
Interior surface is smooth and is hydraulically efficient.
The pipes are highly impervious.
Strong in compression.
These pipes are durable and economical for small diameters.
The pipe material does not absorb water more than 5% of their own weight, when immersed
in water for 24 h.

DISADVANTAGES OF STONEWARE SEWERS:

Heavy, bulky and brittle and hence, difficult to transport.
These pipes cannot be used as pressure pipes, because they are weak in tension.
These require large number of joints as the individual pipe length is small.

LEAD SEWERS:
They are smooth, soft and can take odd shapes.
This pipe has an ability to resist sulphide corrosion.
However, these pipes are very costly.
These are used in house connection.

DESIGN CRITERIA FOR SEWER SYSTEM

For the design of sewer, the following factors are to be considered.

Rate of water supply

Intensity of rainfall
Type of sewer material
Velocity of flow
Slope of the ground
Shape of the sewer.

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VELOCITY OF FLOW
The velocity of flow in a sewer line is determined by the following formulae:
Chezy’s Formula
Kutter’s Formula
Basin’s Formula
Manning’s Formula
Crimp and Burge’s Formula
Hazen’s Williams Formula

CHEZY’S FORMULA:
V = C √mi m/sec.
Where, V – Velocity of flow in m/sec.
C – Chezy’s Constant
m – hydraulic mean depth (A/P) in m.
i - hydraulic gradient or hydraulic slope

KUTTER’S FORMULA:
According to this formula, value of Chezy’s constant (C) is given by,

BASIN’S FORMULA:

MANNING’S FORMULA:
V = 1 m2/3 i1/2
n
Where, n – manning’s constant.

24
 m – hydraulic mean depth (A/P) in m.
i - hydraulic gradient or hydraulic slope

CRIMP AND BURGE’S FORMULA

V = 83.50 m2/3 i1/2

Where,
m – hydraulic mean depth (A/P) in m.

i - hydraulic gradient or hydraulic slope.

HAZEN’S WILLIAMS FORMULA:

V = 0.85 CH X m0.63 i0.54
Where,

CH - Hazen’s Williams constant.

m – hydraulic mean depth (A/P) in m.
i - hydraulic gradient or hydraulic slope

1. Calculate the velocity of flow in a sewer of diameter 1.36 m. The gradient of sewer line is
1 in 420. If n = 0.012 in Manning’s formula, what is the discharge when running one-half
full.

Solution:
Velocity of flow,
V= 1 m2/3 i1/2 m = A/P = π d2/4 = d/4 = 1.36 / 4 = 0.34 m.

n πd

= 1 X 0.342/3 X (1/420) 1/2

0.012

V = 1.981 m/sec.
Discharge,

Q = A X V = ½ X π d2/4 X 1.981
Q = 1.438 m3/sec.

2.Calculate the discharge for a stoneware sewer, running full. The diameter of the sewer is
200 mm and it is laid at a slope of 1 in 72. Take n = 0.013 in Manning’s formula.
Solution:
25
Discharge,
V = 1 m2/3 i1/2 m = A/P = π d2/4 = d/4 = 0.2/ 4

n πd
= 1 X 0.052/3 X (1/72) 1/2 m = 0.05 m.

0.013
V = 1.23 m/sec.

Q = A X V = π d2/4 X 1.23
Q = 0.038 m3/sec.

3.Calculate the discharge of a sewer, running full having a diameter of 200 mm and laid at a
slope of 1 in 240 by using crimp and Burge’s formula.

Solution:
Discharge,
V = 83.50 m2/3 i1/2 m = A/P = π d2/4 = d/4 = 0.2/ 4

= 83.50 X 0.052/3 (1/240)1/2 πd

V = 0.55 m/sec. m = 0.05 m.
Q = A X V = π d2/4 X 0.55

Q = 0.017 m3/sec.

VENTILATION OF SEWERS
Sewage flowing in sewer has got lot of organic and inorganic matters present in it.
Some of the matters decompose and produce gases. These gases are foul smelling, corrosive
and explosive in nature.

If these gases are not disposed of properly, they may create a number of difficulties.
They may cause air locks in sewers and affect the flow of sewage.

They may prove to be dangerous for the maintenance squad working in sewers.
They may also cause explosions and put the sewer line out of commission.

For the disposal of these gases, ventilation of sewer line is a must.

Various gases are produced in sewers due to the purification of organic materials of sewage.

These gases are very foul in nature, cause harm to human health and corrode the sewers.
The gases so produced are highly explosive and may cause accidents.

26
Due to the above difficulties, the sewers must be properly ventilated.

METHODS OF VENTILATION
Proper construction of sewers
Proper design of sewers

Running the sewer at half full or 2/3 depth.

Providing manholes with gratings.

Providing manholes with chemicals.

Proper house drainage system

Providing the ventilating columns or shafts.

PROPER CONSTRUCTION OF SEWERS:

The sewer should be laid at such a gradient that self-cleansing velocity is developed and
hence the swage will have no chance of staying at one point for longer period.

PROPER DESIGN OF SEWERS:

The sewers are designed to run two-third or even one-half full and the remaining top space is
reserved for the accumulation of sewer gases.
The proper design of sewers also ensures enough ventilation.

PROVIDING MANHOLES WITH GRATINGS:

The manhole covers are sometimes provided with perforations, through which the sewer gets
exposed to the atmosphere.

This will help in achieving some ventilation, but it will cause air pollution, hence adopted in
isolated places.
The other disadvantage of this method is that it permits road dust, storm water etc. to enter
the sewer.

PROVIDING MANHOLES WITH CHEMICALS:

In this method, chemicals are placed in the manhole covers.

These chemicals react with the sewer gases and make them harmless.
As this method is costly, it is rarely adopted.

PROPER HOUSE DRAINAGE SYSTEM:

The lateral sewers are ventilated independently by suitable provision of ventilating shafts or
columns.

27
The sewer gases are carried in these columns and they are relieved in the atmosphere above
the height of the building.

PROVIDING THE VENTILATING COLUMNS OR SHAFTS:

The ventilating shaft is provided along the sewer line at an interval of 150 m to 300 m.
They are also provided at the upper end of every branch sewer and at every point where
sewer diameter changes.
Ventilating shaft helps to remove the foul and explosive gases produced in the sewer.

They provide fresh air to the workers working in the manholes.

They also help to prevent the formation of air locks in the sewage and thereby ensure the
continuous flow of sewage inside the sewer.

CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE OF SEWERS

The sewers should be properly cleaned and maintained in good working condition.

It should be noted that sewers which are once laid and buried into the ground should not be
forgotten as they are also liable to corrosion, deterioration, erosion etc.

CAUSES
Breakage of sewers
Clogging
Odours

BREAKAGE OF SEWERS:
The sewers are sometimes broken after being laid under the ground.
Several factors may contribute to the breakage of sewers, being poor foundation, excessive
superimposed loads, impact due to vibrations etc.
The presence of corrosive matter in sewage will slowly eat away the material of sewer and it
will ultimately result in the breakage of sewer.

CLOGGING:
Clogging mainly occurs in sewers of small size as it is possible for a man to enter such
sewers and clean them.
The clogging may be due to waste building materials, ashes, deposition of sand and grit.
It may also be caused by the contribution of greasy matter from garages, hotels, soap
industries.
It may be noted that clogging is predominant in sewers lay at flat slopes such that the self-
cleansing velocities are not developed.

28
ODOURS:
The organic matter present in sewer decomposes and gives out unpleasant odours.
It is essential to clean the sewers to bring down the intensity of such unpleasant odours to the
minimum possible extent.
METHODS OF CLEANING OF SEWERS
Cleaning and Flushing
Cleaning of catch pits
Inspection
Periodical Repairs
Proper Connections

CLEANING AND FLUSHING:

The cleaning of large sewers is done manually.
The man enters the sewers through manholes and scraps the dies of sewer by hand.
The scraped material is removed through manholes.
The cleaning of small sewers is affected by flushing.
For this purpose, the automatic flushing tanks are sometimes installed on the sewer line.
CLEANING OF CATCH PITS:
The catch pits used to collect storm water are cleaned after every storm.

The catch pits contain debris, silt, sand etc. and even the water contained in catch pits is
likely to give rise to the growth of mosquitoes.
A slight trace of organic matter in silt will give unpleasant odour.

The oil and grease traps are also periodically cleaned to avoid the nuisance due to unpleasant
odours.

INSPECTION:
The sewer and its appurtenances should be inspected at regular intervals to ascertain their
proper working.
The inspection includes examination of structures, measuring rate of flow, determining the
amount of clogging.
In case of small sewers, inspection may be also carried out through lamp holes.
In case of large sewers, inspection is carried out by entering and examining the condition of
sewer.
Extreme care should be taken before entering the sewer and absence of poisonous and
explosive gases in sewer should be confirmed before entering the sewer.
A fire-hose with nozzle may be also inserted in the sewer and the water under pressure may
be discharged through the nozzle to clean the sewer.

29
When flushing is inadequate to remove obstructions in the sewer, the following methods are
employed to make the sewer clean.
Flexible rod.
Mechanical tools.
Use of pills.
The precautions to be taken during inspection, only experienced workers should be allowed
to enter the sewer for inspection.
The explosion proof electric lighting equipment should only be used for inspection inside the
manhole.
The workers should be provided with proper protective measures such as gas masks, rubber
gloves, gum boots, non-sparkling tools, safety belt etc.
The workers should be trained to guard against the water borne diseases through sewage.
They should also be advised to keep excellent personal hygiene.
The warning signs for traffic should be placed on the road on which manholes are opened out
for inspection.

PERIODICAL REPAIRS:
The damaged portions of sewers should be immediately repaired.
The brick sewers require frequent repairs.
The broken bricks should be replacing and pointing to the brickwork should be done
at regular intervals.
The manholes also should be periodically examined and repaired, if necessary.
The damaged or broken covers of street inlet or catch basin should be replaced.
The manhole covers which have loose by traffic should be tightened.
The defective connections between the house sewers and the street sewers should be
immediately repaired.
The ventilating columns or shafts should be checked at regular intervals and it should
be ensured that they are functioning properly.

PROPER CONNECTIONS:
The connection of lateral sewers with branch sewers should be carried out by authorized
licensed plumbers only.
The plumbing work of house drainage should be carefully done and the joints should be made
water tight.

30
 SCHOOL OF BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

UNIT – II – LAYOUT OF SEWERAGE SYSTEM – SCI 1306

– SCIA1301

1
 LAYING OF SEWERS
 It is common practice to lay sewer line between two manholes at a time.
 The trench is excavated between two manholes and the bedding layer of concrete is
provided for soft soil while in case of rocky or hard soil, no bedding.
 The sewers are laid down between two manholes.
 The various steps involved in the laying and testing of sewers are:
 Setting out Sewer Centre Line
 Alignment and Gradient of Sewers
 Excavation of Trenches, Timbering and Dewatering
 Laying and Jointing of Pipe Sewers
 Testing of Pipe Sewers
 Backfilling of Trenches.
 SETTING OUT SEWER CENTRE LINE:
 This is the first step in the laying of sewers.
 The laying of sewers is generally carried out by starting from the tail end or the outfall
end, and proceeding upwards.
 The advantage of starting the laying of sewers from the tail end is that the tail sewers
may be utilized even during the initial period of construction.
 On the other hand, if the laying of sewers is started from the head end the functioning
of the sewerage scheme has to wait till the completion of the entire scheme.
 From the longitudinal section of the sewer line, the positions of manholes are located
on the ground because it is the general practice to lay sewer line between two
manholes at a time.
 The sewer centre line is marked on the ground by driving the pegs at an interval of 7.5
m or 15 m as per convenience.
 The sewer centre line should be properly maintained during the construction.
 ALIGNMENT AND GRADIENT OF SEWERS:
 The sewers should be laid to the correct alignment and gradient by setting the
positions and levels of sewers so as to ensure a smooth gravity flow.
 This is done with the help of suitable boning rods and sight rails, and a dumpy level.
 Modified levels of invert are first obtained by adding a suitable vertical length to the
invert levels mentioned on the longitudinal section.
 These modified levels of invert are marked on the sight rail.

2
 These levels are marked either by fixing nails on sight rails or by adjusting the top of
sight rails to the modified invert levels of sewer line.
 Thus, an imaginary line parallel to the proposed sewer line is obtained on the ground.
 In order to check the invert level of sewer boning rod is used. The boning rod is a
vertical wooden post fitted with a cross-head or tee at top and an iron shoe at bottom.
The boning rod is moved to and fro in the trench so as to obtain the invert-line of the
sewer on the prepared bed of the trench.
 EXCAVATION OF TRENCHES:
 The work of excavation is usually carried out in the form of open cut trenches but in
certain situations as indicated later tunneling is also adopted.
 The excavation is made so as to have trenches of such lengths, widths and depths
which would enable the sewers to be properly constructed.
 In busy streets and localities, the length of the trench to be excavated in advance of
the end of the constructed sewer and left open at any time is usually not more than 18
m.
 TIMBERING OF TRENCHES:
 It may be necessary to restrict the top width of the trench and hence the excavation
has to be made with vertical sides.
 When the depth of the trench exceeds 1.5 to 2 m, and when the excavation has to be
made with vertical sides which cannot be sustained, it becomes necessary to support
the sides of the trench by sheeting and bracing.
 This operation is known as timbering of trench.
 There are various methods adopted for timbering of trenches out of which box
sheeting is most commonly used.
 Sometimes in place of timbering steel sheeting is adopted in the case of badly water-
logged areas or in other situations where timber is not easily available.
 Steel sheeting is more water-tight, stronger and durable, and though costlier than
timber, it can be used many times without disintegration and hence more economical
in works of larger scale.
 DEWATERING OF TRENCHES:
 Where the sub-soil water level is very near the ground surface, the trench becomes
wet and muddy because of water oozing in the trench from the sides and bottom.
 In such cases the construction of sewer becomes difficult.
 As such trenches for sewer construction needs to be dewatered to facilitate the
placement of concrete and laying of pipe sewer or construction of concrete or brick
sewer and kept dewatered until the concrete foundations, pipe joints or brick work or
concrete have cured.
3
 LAYING AND JOINTING OF PIPE SEWERS:
 Before laying the pipe sewer it should be ensured that the trench has been excavated
up to the level of the bottom of the bed of concrete or the bed of compacted granular
material if such a bed is to be provided, or up to the invert level of the pipe sewer if
no such bed is to be provided.
 TESTING OF PIPE SEWERS:
 Sewers are normally subjected to the following tests before they are put into service:
 Tests for straightness and obstruction
 Water test
 Air test
 Smoke test.
 BACKFILLING OF TRENCHES:
 Backfilling of the sewer trench is an important consideration in laying of sewers.
 However, the trench should be backfilled only after the laid sewer has been tested and
approved for water tightness of joints.
 Further when class A bedding is used the backfilling should be carried out only after
the concrete has set.
 The work of backfilling should be carried out with due care, particularly the selection
of the soil used for backfilling around the sewer, so as to ensure the future safety of
the sewer.
 The method of backfilling to be used varies with the width of the trench, the character
of the material excavated, the method of excavation and degree of compaction
required.
 TESTS FOR STRAIGHTNESS AND OBSTRUCTION:
 As soon as a section of sewer is laid it is tested for straightness and obstruction.
 These tests are carried out in the following two ways:
 At the high end of the sewer a smooth ball of diameter 13 mm less than the pipe bore
is inserted.
 If there is no obstruction such as yarn or mortar projecting through the joints, the ball
will roll down the invert of the pipe and emerge at the lower end.
 A mirror is placed at one end of the sewer line and a lamp is placed at the other end.
 If the sewer line is straight, the full circle of light will be observed. If the sewer line is
not straight, this would be apparent.
 The mirror will also indicate any obstruction in the sewer line.

4
  WATER TEST:
 Water test is carried out to find out the water tightness of the joints.

 This test is carried out after giving sufficient time for the joints to set.
 In the case of concrete and stoneware pipes with cement mortar joints, pipes are tested
three days after the cement mortar joints have been made.

 It is necessary that the pipelines are filled with water for about a week before
commencing the application of pressure to allow for the absorption by the pipe wall.

JOINTS IN SEWERS
 Joints are used to john various lengths of pipes to develop a sewer line.
 The type of joint to be adopted depends on the pipe material, internal pressure and
external loads, and many other factors.
REQUIREMENTS OF GOOD SEWER JOINTS:

TYPES OF JOINTS:
 Following are the 5 common types of sewer joints:
 Bell and Spigot Joints.
 Collar Joints.
 Expansion Joint.
 Flanged Joint.
 Flexible Joint.
 Mechanical Joint.
 Cement Mortar Joint.

5
 BELL AND SPIGOT JOINTS:

This joint is also known as socket and spigot joint.

This type of joint is mainly used for cast iron pipes of all sizes and concrete pipes
below 60 cm in diameter.
The pipes which are to be joined by this joint are made in such a way so that one end
is enlarged arid the other end is normal.
The enlarged end is called socket or bell and the normal end is called spigot.
The spigot end is inserted into the bell end and the gap of the joint is filled up with
molten lead or bitumen or cement mortar.

Figure No.1
COLLAR JOINTS:
 For such a joint in sewers, the plain ends of the consecutive lengths of pipe are kept
near each other.
 A collar of slightly bigger diameter is placed around.
 The annular space between the collar and the ends of the pipe then filled with cement
mortar of 1:1 proportion.
 Such joints used for concrete pipes of larger diameters.

6
 Figure No.2
EXPANSION JOINT:

This joint is adopted at places where pipes expand or contracts due to variation in
atmospheric temperature.
Here the socket end is cast flanged and the spigot end is plain.
A flanged ring and a rubber gasket are placed in position on the spigot end.
Then the spigot end is inserted into the socket end nut and bolts are tightened.

Figure No.3

7
FLANGED JOINT:

This joint is mostly used for temporary work.

The pipe used in this type of joint has flanges on both ends.
While joining the pipes, a rubber gasket is inserted between the flanges and nut bolts
are tightened.

Figure No.4

FLEXIBLE JOINT:

This joint is used at such places where settlement is likely to occur after laying
of the pipe.
For this joint, one pipe has spigot end and another pipe has socket end.
The spigot is fitted into the socket and bitumen is filled in the annular space
formed between socket and spigot.

Figure No.5

8
MECHANICAL JOINTS:

 Such joints use mechanical devices like flange rings, bolts, screwed ends etc. so that
to keep the two ends together.

 Therefore it, used for metallic sewers made of cast iron, steel etc.

Figure No.6

CEMENT MORTAR JOINT:

 A rich cement mortar of 1:1:5 or 1:2 is applied between the space of bell and spigot
end.

 For maintaining the alignment of sewers, a special arrangement of gasket or packing

pieces may be placed.

 The mortar is placed in the annular space formed between bell and spigot ends and the
joints is finished by applying cement mortar at an angle of 45° on the outer face.

 ADVANTAGES:

 Easy availability of joint materials

 Strength of the joint is satisfactory.

 DISADVANTAGES:

 In this joint, cement is the main material which has been heavily affected by acids,
alkaline materials etc.

 The problem of cement mortar joint is, it requires skilled labours of construction.

 If the construction is poor, the joint becomes poor and does not water-tight.
9
 Generally, cement mortar joints are more rigid in nature.

 If any repair work or replacement of joint is to be made, it leads to the breakage of

sewer or joint.

Figure No.7

SEWER APPURTENANCES

Sewage flowing in the sewer line contains a large number of impurities in the form of
silt, fats, oils, rags etc.
Under normal flows they are not likely to settle and choke the sewers, but during
small flows self-cleansing velocity is not likely to develop and the chances of choking
of the sewers are increased.
Chokings have to be removed time to time, and facilities should be provided on the
sewer lines for this purpose.
Therefore, for proper functioning and to facilitate maintenance of the sewage system,
various additional structures have to be constructed on the sewer lines.
These structures are known as sewer appurtenances.
Following are the important appurtenances:

 Manholes

 Drop manholes

 Lamp holes

 Street Inlets

 Catch basins

10
  Flushing Tanks

 Grease and oil traps

 Regulators

 Inverted siphons

MANHOLES:

 The manholes are R.C.C or masonry chambers constructed on the sewer line to
facilitate a man to enter the sewer line and make the necessary inspection and repairs.

 These are fitted with suitable cast iron covers.

 The manholes should be installed at every point where there is a change in direction,
change in pipe size, or considerable change in gradient.

 As far as possible sewer line between two subsequent man holes should be straight.

 The centre distance between manholes is less for sewers of smaller size while it may
behave such a size that man can easily enter in the working chamber.

 The minimum size is 50cm diameter.

Figure No.8
11
DROP MANHOLE:

 A manhole in which a lateral service line or the main line enters a manhole above
the manhole's channel or above the flow line so that the flow drops to a lower level is
called a drop manhole.

 The drop manhole is a type of manhole in which a vertical pipe is provided.

 It is a measure of connecting high level branch sewer to low level main sewer. They
are connected through a vertical pipe.

 The installation of a drop manhole becomes necessary when there is difference in

levels is more than 60cm between branch sewer and the main sewer, which can be
avoided by increasing the sewer grade.

Figure No.9

LAMP HOLES:

 In narrow lanes, change of gradient and slight curves where space is insufficient for
the construction of manholes, a vertical shaft of 20-30 cm diameter is connected to the
sewer by a T – bend.

 These small size openings are covered by a cast iron or R.C.C cover flush with the
road level at the top.

12
  A small, vertical pipe or shaft extending from the surface of the ground to a sewer.

 A light (or lamp) may be lowered down the pipe for the purpose of inspecting the
sewer.

Figure No.10

STREET INLETS:

 These are meant to admit the surface runoff to the sewers and form a very important
part of the system.

 Their location and design should therefore be given careful consideration.

 Storm water inlets may be categorized under three major groups viz, curb inlets,
gutter inlets, and combination inlets, each being either depressed or flush depending
upon their elevation with reference to the pavement surface.

 The actual structure of an inlet is usually made of brick work.

 The clear opening shall not be more than 25mm.

 The connecting pipe from the street inlet to the main street sewer should not be less
than 200mm dia. and should have sufficient slope.

 Maximum spacing of inlets would depend upon various conditions of road surface,
size and type of inlet and rainfall. A maximum spacing of 30m is recommended.

 Inlets are of three types:

 Curb inlet, Gutter inlet, Combined Curb and Gutter inlet

13
CURB INLETS:

 Curb inlets are vertical openings in the road curbs through which the storm water
flows and are preferred where heavy traffic is anticipated.

 These inlets are more suitable than gutter inlets, because less quantity of floating
solids enter in the catch pits.

Figure No.11

GUTTER INLETS:

 Gutter inlet is sometimes called horizontal inlet also.

 This inlet is constructed in road gutter and storm water enters directly into it through
horizontal grating provided at the top of the inlet.

 Such inlets are suitable for roads having steep slope, because its capacity to handle
storm water is quite large.

Figure No.12

14
CATCH BASINS:

 Catch basins are the structures of pucca chamber and a stout cover.

 They are meant for the retention of suspended grit, sludge and other heavy debris and
floating rubbish from rainwater which otherwise might have entered and cause
choking problems.

 The outlet pipe from the catch basin may be submerged in order to prevent the escape
of odours from the sewer and provision that also causes retention of floating matter.

 Their use is not recommended since they are more of a nuisance and a source of
mosquito breeding apart from posing substantial maintenance problems.

Figure No.13

FLUSHING TANKS:

 Flushing tanks are provided to flush the sewers.

 They are seldom used.

 At such places where self-cleansing velocity is not developed or when the ground is
flat and it is not possible to lay the sewer lines at designed gradients, flushing tanks
required to flush the sewer line.

15
  They are installed at suitable intervals to clean the sewers of choking and
obstructions.

 It resembles a manhole but it is equipped with a siphon at the bottom.

 This is called the automatic flushing tank in which the water is automatically released
from the tank at suitable intervals which may be water supply pipe tap.

Figure No.14

GREASE AND OIL TRAPS:

 The sewage from kitchens of hotels and restaurants and industries contains oil and
grease and fats

 If these oils and greases are not removed from the sewage they will stick to the
interior of the sewer and clogging.

 Sewage from garages, particularly from floor drains and wash racks, contains oil, mud
and sand.

 The principle, on which oil and grease trap work, is since oil and grease being lighter
than water float on the surface of sewage, and the outlet is provided well below the
surface so the water is excluded from oil and grease.

 If silt also has to be excluded, it is done by providing outlet at top.

 The silt settles at bottom and silt free water can be drained through outlet.

16
 Figure No.15

REGULATORS:

 A Regulator is a device that diverts sewage flow from one sewer into another.

 The regulator usually goes into action when the sewage flow reaches a predetermined
amount.

 It may then divert all the sewage or only that part above the predetermined flow at
which it begins to function.

 Regulators are mostly used where combined sewers discharge into interceptors.

 The interceptor takes the dry-weather flow, but the storm water is diverted into a
sewer which flows to the nearest water course.

INVERTED SIPHONS:

 Inverted siphons are used to carry sewage or stormwater under streams, highway cuts,
or other depressions in the ground.

 Inverted siphons (also called depressed sewers) allow stormwater or wastewater

sewers to pass under obstructions such as rivers.

17
 Figure No.16

PRINCIPLES GOVERNING THE DESIGN FOR DRAINAGE IN

BUILDINGS

PLUMBING SYSTEMS FOR DRAINAGE:

Following are the four systems of plumbing for the building drainage:

 One pipe system

 Two pipe system

 Single stack system

 Single stack partially ventilated system

ONE PIPE SYSTEM:

 In this system only one main pipe is provided which collects both the foul soil waste
as well as unfoul waste from the buildings.

18
  The main pipe is directly connected to the drainage system.

 If this system is provided in multistoried buildings the lavatory blocks of various

floors are so placed one over the other, so that the waste water discharged from the
different units can be carried through short branch drains.

 All the traps of the W.C., basins sink, etc. are fully ventilated and connected to the
ventilation pipe.

 But all gully traps and waste pipes are completely dispensed with.

Figure No.17

TWO PIPE SYSTEM:

 This is the most common system used in India.

 In this system, two pipes are provided.

 One pipe collects the foul soil and lavatory wastes, whereas the second pipe collects
the unfoul water from kitchen, bathrooms, house washings, rain water etc.

19
  The soil pipes (pipes carrying the soil waste) are directly connected to the drain,
whereas the waste pipes (pipes carrying unfoul water) are connected through the
trapped gully.

 All the traps used in this system are fully ventilated.

Figure No.18

SINGLE STACK SYSTEM:

 This is similar to single pipe system, the only difference being that no ventilation is
provided even in the traps too.

 Hence it uses only one pipe which carries the sewage as well as the sullage and is not
provided with any separate vent pipe.

20
 Figure No.19

SINGLE STACK PARTIALLY VENTILATED SYSTEM:

 This is an improved form of single stack system in the sense that in this system, the
traps of the water closets are separately ventilated by a separate vent pipe called relief
vent pipe.

 This system is in between the one pipe and single-stack system.

 In this system only one pipe is provided to collect all types of waste water foul as well
as unfoul.

21
 Figure No.20

TYPICAL LAYOUT PLAN SHOWING HOUSE DRAINAGE

CONNECTIONS

Figure No.21
22
IMPORTANT TERMS:

TRAPS:

 A trap is a device which is used to prevent sewer gases from entering the buildings.

 The traps are located below or within a plumbing fixture and retains small amount of
water.

 The retaining water creates a water seal which stops foul gases going back to the
building from drain pipes.

 Therefore, all plumbing fixtures such as sinks, washbasins, bathtubs and toilets etc.
are equipped with traps.

23
 This article tells you the features of traps, various types of traps and water seal.

 A trap has following features:

 It may be manufactured as an integral trap with the appliance as in some models of

European WC, or it may be a separate fitting called an attached trap, which is
connected to waste or foul water outlet of appliances.

 The traps should be of a self-cleansing pattern.

 Traps for use in domestic waste should be convenient for cleaning.

 A good trap should maintain an efficient water seal under all conditions of flow.

24
 SEWAGE PUMPING STATION

A pumping station is made up of a large tank, known as a wet well, that acts as the receiver
for sewage from a building or a group of buildings.

Sewage from individual houses flows into the wet well.

The sewage will then sit in the well until it reaches a predetermined level.

Once it reaches this level, a pump will kick in to pressurize the sewage so that it will travel
out of the wet well, uphill, to a point where it enters the main sewer, or that it can then travel
into the main sewer using gravity.

ADVANTAGES OF A SEWAGE PUMP STATION

 A pump station offers convenience when installing a sewage system, and has a
potential of cutting construction cost.

 Pump stations are fitted with remote monitoring systems, which keep operators
updated.

 Sewage is pumped automatically without any human contact, which eliminates the
risk of health problems.

 Different sizes of pumps are available for domestic applications and commercial
applications.

 The intake of the pumps is often wide to prevent blocking.

 Sewage pumping systems are fitted with alarms to alert you to problems with the
system.

 This minimizes the risk of sewage overflowing as you are alerted quickly.

DISADVANTAGES OF A SEWAGE PUMP STATION:

 Design and installation need to be done expertly to ensure that the system is reliable
and fit for purpose.

 This requirement for expertise means that it can be costly.

 Although the pump systems generally don’t use much power, there is still a cost to the
electricity over using a gravity system.

 It can be difficult to source parts for your pump.

 This can be avoided by taking up a maintenance contract with Pumping Solutions.

25
  Fat and grease build-ups can impact reliability.

 Although pumps are selected to minimize the risk of blockages, there is still potential
for blockages to occur.

PUMPS FOR SEWAGE PUMPING:

 Centrifugal pump

 Reciprocating pump

 Air pressure pump or ejectors

CENTRIFUGAL PUMPS:

 Centrifugal pumps are most commonly used for pumping sewage, because these
pumps can be easily installed in pits and sumps, and can easily transport the
suspended matter present in the sewage.

RECIPROCATING PUMPS:

 Reciprocating pumps are much less employed these days for sewage pumping,
because of their high initial cost, difficulty in maintenance and greater wear and tear
of valves.

 However, in cases where it is required to deal with difficult sludges and where large
quantity of sewage is to be pumped against low heads, reciprocating pumps may be
used after passing the sewage through screen with 20 mm spacing.

AIR PRESSURE PUMPS OR PNEUMATIC EJECTORS:

 Pneumatic ejectors are used for pumping or lifting small quantities of sewage.

 The conditions favouring installation of pneumatic ejectors are:

 Where small quantity of sewage is to be lifted from basement of a building to a high-

level sewer.

 Where the quantity of sewage from a low-lying area does not justify the construction
of a pumping station.

 Where a centrifugal pump of small capacity is likely to clog.

26
 SCHOOL OF BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

UNIT – III – CHARACTERISTICS OF SEWAGE – SCI 1306

– SCIA1301

1
 WASTE WATER CHARACTERSTICS
 Wastewater is simply that part of the water supply to the community or to the industry
which has been used for different purposes and has been mixed with solids either
suspended or dissolved.
 Wastewater is 99.9% water and 0.1% solids.

 The main task in treating the wastewater is simply to remove most or all of this 0.1%
of solids.

 Sewage is dilute mixture of the various types of wastes from the residential, public
and industrial places.

 The characteristics and composition of sewage mainly depend on this source.

 Sewage contains organic and inorganic matters which may be in dissolved,
suspension and colloidal state.

 Sewage also contains various types of bacteria’s, virus, protozoa, algae, fungi etc.
Some of these are pathogens and are harmful to the human and animal life.

 STRENGTH OF SEWAGE: -
 Sewage is a water-carried waste, in solution or suspension, which is intended to be
removed from a community.

 Also known as wastewater, it is more than 99% water and is characterized by volume
or rate of flow, physical condition, chemical constituents and the bacteriological
organisms that it contains.

TYPES OF WASTEWATER FROM HOUSEHOLD

TYPE OF WASTE WATER SOURCE OF

WATER

GREY WATER Washing water from the kitchen, bathroom and

laundry.

BLACK WATER Water from flush toilet.

YELLOW WATER Urine from separated toilets and urinals.

BROWN WATER Black water without urine.

Table No.1

2
RAW SEWAGE:
This indicates that sewage that is not treated.

FRESH SEWAGE:
This indicates that sewage which has been recently originated or produced.

ANALYSIS OF SEWAGE:

 Before the designing of treatment and disposal of sewage, it is necessary to have the
information regarding various constituents of sewage.

 It is necessary for the following purposes:

 To know the strength, character, constituents and condition of sewage to be treated for
laying down the line of treatment and types of disposal works to be adopted.

 To control and regulate the performance of sewage treatment works from day 2 day
suiting the sewage.
 To determine the final effluent obtained after treatment is within the limit of self-
purification or not.

 To control and regulate the performance of sewage treatment works from day 2 day
suiting the sewage.

 To determine the final effluent obtained after treatment is within the limit of self-
purification or not.

SAMPLING OF SEWAGE
 The constituents of sewage continuously change with time and position in tanks.
 The quantity of sewage reaching disposal works in morning differs from that of
reaching in noon or night.

 Therefore, it is difficult to collect the true sample of sewage.

 To avoid this difficulty, sewage samples are collected over a period of 24 hours after
1-hour interval.

 All the samples collected are kept in cool place so that biological character may not
change before analysis.

 Each sample bears the date and its time of collection.

 Sometimes preservative such as chloroform, sulphuric acid, formaldehyde are added

in the samples to prevent change in the quantity of sewage.

 For conducting BOD test, no preservative should be added in the sewage.

3
 Each sample should carry a label as under Source, Date, Time, Preservative added and
Collectors identity.

CHARACTERISTICS OF SEWAGE
 Physical characteristics of sewage
 Chemical characteristics of sewage

 Biological characteristics of sewage

Figure No.1

 COLOUR:
 Color of sewage indicates its strength and age.
 Fresh sewage is yellow in colour. Sometimes grey or light brown also indicates the
fresh sewage.

 If the sewage colour is black or dark, it indicates decomposed or stale sewage.

 When industrial effluent is mixed it give characteristic color to sewage.

 At a temperature of above 20 °C, sewage will change from fresh to old in 2 - 6 hours.
 The old sewage is converted to dark grey and black color due to anaerobic activities,
known as stale or septic color.

 Some industrial sewage also add color to domestic wastewater.

 The grey, dark grey and black color is due to formation of sulfide produced under
anaerobic conditions reacts with the metals present in wastewater.

4
 Colour should be less than 15 TCU (True Colour Units) as per the standards.

 ODOUR:
 Fresh domestic sewage is almost odourless.
 Septic or stale sewage is putrid in odor which is due to generation of H2 S during
anaerobic decomposition of organic matters.

 When industrial effluent is mixed, it gives characteristics odor to sewage.

 Fresh domestic sewage has a slightly soapy or oil odour.

 Stale sewage has a pronounced odour of Hydrogen Sulphide (H2S).

 TEMPERATURE:

 Temperature of sewage depends upon season. However, temperature is slightly higher

than that of ground water.
 High temperature of sewage is due to evolution of heat during decomposition of
organic matter in sewage.

 If temperature increases, the viscosity of sewage decreases.

 The reduction in viscosity causes increase in efficiency of treatment units.

 Temperature of sewage the sewage is slightly more than that of water, because of the
presence of industrial sewage.

 The temperature changes when sewage becomes septic because of chemical process.
 The lower temperature indicates the entrance of ground water into the sewage.

 TURBIDITY:
 Sewage is highly turbid.

 Turbidity of sewage is due to dissolved substances, colloidal matters, suspended

solids and microbial cells.
 Measure of light‐transmitting properties of water, used to indicate quality of waste
discharges and natural waters with respect to colloidal and residential suspended
matter.

 Turbidity is measured in terms of NTU (Nephelometric Turbidity units), JTU

(Jackson Turbidity Units) and FTU (Formazin Turbidity Units).

NTU is the standard measure.

5
 TOTAL SOLIDS:
 In liquid sewage, minimum of 0.01 % solid particles are present. The total quantity of
solid particles present in the sewage is called Total Solids.
 Those solids that are not dissolved in wastewater are called suspended solids. Size of
suspended solids is more than 1 µm.

6
 Solids which remain dissolved in the sewage with the size of less than 10-3µm.

 Finely divided solids remaining either in solution or in suspension (size varies within
1and 10-3µm) and are called Colloidal solids.

 Those suspended solids that settle are called settleable solids, grit, or sludge. The size
is more than 10 µm.

 When suspended solids float, they are called floatable solids or scum.

 Total solids are classified based on their chemical behavior:

Organic Solids

Inorganic Solids

 TOTAL SUSPENDED SOLIDS:

 Those solids that are not dissolved in wastewater are called suspended solids. Size of
suspended solids is more than 1 µm.
 Total suspended solids (TSS) are referred to as non-filterable residue.

 TSS is expressed in the unit mg/L.

 FIXED AND VOLATILE SOLIDS:

 The residue for total solids, total suspended solids or total dissolved solids tests is
ignited to constant weight at 500 oC ± 50.
 The weight lost on ignition is called volatile solids, whereas the remaining solids
represent the fixed total suspended or dissolved solids.

 The determination of volatile portion of solids is useful in controlling waster water

treatment plant operations because it gives a rough estimation of the amount of
organic matter present in the solid fraction of waste water, activated sludge and
industrial waste.

 Those solids that do not burn or evaporate at 500°C to 600°C, but remain as a residue,
are called fixed solids.

 Fixed solids are usually inorganic in nature and may be composed of grit, clay, salts,
and metals.

 pH:
 sewage is slightly alkaline in pH.

 PH is used to describe the acid or base properties of water solutions.

 The pH of sewage is initially high and drops when the sewage becomes septic but
becomes increases again with the treatment processes.

7
 CHLORIDE:
 Human beings discharge large amount (8-15gm/day) of chloride in the form of NaCl,
especially through urine and sweat.

 So domestic sewage from toilet and bathroom contains higher level of chloride.

8
 TOTAL ORGANIC CARBON:
 Another important method of expressing organic matter is in terms of its carbon
content.

 Carbon is the primary constituent of organic matter.

 Total organic carbon is the amount of carbon found in an organic compound and is
often used as a non-specific indicator of water quality or cleanliness of
pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment.

9
10
 DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO):
 The determination of dissolved oxygen present in sewage is important because of
while discharging the treated sewage into some river stream, it is necessary the treated
sewage of 4 ppm of D.O in it.

 Otherwise fish are likely to be killed, creating nuisance near the vicinity of the
disposal.

 In order to ensure this, D.O tests are performed during sewage disposal treatment
processes.

 If the temperature of sewage is more, D.O content will be less.

 Due to high level of microbial cells and biodegradable organic matters, sewage have
very low level of dissolved oxygen.
 In some sewage, DO is completely absent.

 Level of Do depends on age and condition of sewage.

 Low level DO is also due to lower solubility of oxygen in sewage.

 The solubility of oxygen in sewage is 95 % of that in distilled water.

 The D.O content of sewage is determined by Winkler’s method.

 POPULATION EQUIVALENT:
 Population Equivalent = Total of the industrial wastewater (Kg/day)

BOD value per capita/day

11
 Population Equivalent is used to indicate the strength of the industrial wastewater
required for,
 Estimating the treatment required.

 Charging suitable levy on the industries to meet out the cost of treatment.

 RELATIVE STABILITY:
It is defined as the ratio of oxygen available in the effluent to the total oxygen
required to satisfy its first stage B.O.D demand.

It is expressed as percentage of the total oxygen required and can be expressed by the
equation.

Relative stability, S = 100 (1 – (0.794) t20

Relative stability, S = 100 (1 – (0.630) t37

Where, S – Relative Stability

 t20 & t37 - represent the time in days for a sewage sample to decolourise a standard
volume of methylene blue solution, when incubated at 20° or 37° respectively.

 Dilution Factor = Volume of diluted sample

Volume of undiluted sample of sewage

BOD = Depletion of oxygen X Dilution Factor

PROBLEMS
1. If 25 ml of raw sewage has been diluted to 250 ml and the DO concentration of the
diluted sample at the beginning of BOD test was 8 mg/l & 5 mg/l after 5-day
incubation at 20°C. Find BOD of raw sewage.

Solution:
Volume of sewage = 2.5 ml
Volume of diluted sample = 250 ml

Dilution Factor = Volume of diluted sample

Volume of undiluted sample of sewage

= 250/2.5 = 100
Loss of D.O during the test = D.O before testing – D.O after testing

= 8 – 5 = 3 mg/l.

BOD of sewage = Loss of D.O X Dilution Factor

= 3 X 100 = 300 mg/l.

12
2. A 2 % solution of a sewage sample is incubate for 5 days at 20°C. The depletion of
oxygen was found to be 4 ppm. Determine the BOD of sewage.

Solution:

Dilution Factor = 100 = 100/2 = 50 %.

% of solution

Depletion of oxygen = 4 ppm.

BOD = Depletion of oxygen X Dilution Factor

= 4 X 50 = 200 ppm.

3. The domestic sewage of a town was tested for total solids and following results are
obtained.

Volume of sample of sewage – 1000 ml.

Volume of solids after evaporation of liquid – 0.952 gm.

Volume of dry residue after ignition – 0.516 gm.

Determine Total, Fixed and Volatile solids.

Solution:
Total Solids, ST = 0.952 / 1000 X 10 6 = 952 ppm.

Fixed Solids, SF = 0.516 / 1000 X 10 6 = 516 ppm.

Volatile Solids, S V = ST – SF= 952 – 516 = 436 ppm.

4. In order to conduct 5-day BOD test, sample of wastewater was diluted with
specially prepared dilution water with D.F – 150, contents of DO in beginning and
end of test were found to be 11 and 7 ppm. Find 5-day BOD and its nature.

Solution:

BOD5 = Oxygen Consumed X Dilution Factor

= (11 – 7) X 150 = 600 ppm.

Hence the wastewater is very strong and requires heavy treatment before disposal.

5. The average sewage flow from a city is 80 X 106 l/day. If the average 5 day BOD is
285 mg/l, compute the total daily 5 day oxygen demand in Kg. and the population
equivalent of sewage. Assume per capita BOD of sewage per day is 75 gm.

Solution:
Quantity of sewage flowing /day = 80 X 106

Average 5-day BOD = 285 mg/l

13
 Total daily 5-day oxygen demand = 285 X 80 X 106 = 22800 X 106 mg

= 22800 kg.

Population Equivalent = 22800 / 0.075 = 304000

6. Calculate the population equivalent of a city

The average sewage from the city is 95 X 10 6 l/day

The average 5-day BOD is 300 mg/l.

Solution:
Average 5-day BOD = 300 mg/l

Average sewage flow = 95 X 10 6 l/day

Total BOD in sewage = 300 X 95 X 106 = 28500 Kg/day

(Assuming Domestic Sewage to be 0.08 Kg/per/day)

Population Equivalent = 28500 / 0.08 = 356250.

BACTERIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SEWAGE:

 BACTERIA:
 The bacteria are more active and exist in abundance.

 The bacterial characteristics of sewage are due to the presence of microorganisms,

which include bacteria and other living organisms such as algae, fungi, protozoa etc.

 There are various types of micro-organisms. The most fundamental and the simplest
wholly contained life systems are bacteria.
 Most of the bacteria types are harmless and under conditions, beneficial to humans.
Animals and crops. Such bacterias are called non -pathogenic bacterias or non-
pathogens.

 Certain other bacteria are the deadly foes of man and animals and may enter their
tissues causing serious diseases. Such bacterias are known as pathogenic bacterias or
pathogens.
 However, pathogenic (disease-causing) organisms such as typhoid, dysentery, and
other intestinal disorders may be present in wastewater.

 These bacteria are responsible for the decomposition of complex compounds to stable
compounds with the help of some extracellular and intracellular enzymes.

 Most of the bacterias require oxygen for their survival.

 These bacterias consume dissolved oxygen from the water and decompose the refuge
and organic matter present in water or sewage, thus doing their cleaning up job.
14
 Depending upon the mode of action of bacteria may be divided into the following
three categories:
• Aerobic Bacteria

• Anaerobic Bacteria
• Facultative Bacteria

 ALGAE:
 Some algae found in sewage includes Chlorella phormidum, Ulothrix etc.

 Algae are used in trickling filter in sewage treatment plant.

 FUNGI:
 Fungi like Fusarium and Sporotricum are found in sewage which play important role
in trickling filter.

 VIRUS:
 Some viruses causing human disease such as Poliovirus, Rotavirus, Hepatitis A are
found in sewage which get access through stool of patients.

 PROTOZOA:
 Some protozoa that cause disease of intestinal tract enter into sewage together with
stool of patient.

 Examples: Entamoeba histolytica, Giardia, Balantidium coli etc are pathogenic

protozoa

 Few protozoa such as Vorticella and Opercularia are found in trickling filter.

DECOMPOSITION OF SEWAGE
 The organic matter decomposed by bacteria under biological action is called
biodegradable organic matter.
 Most of the organic matter present in sewage is biodegradable and hence undergo
biological decomposition can be divided into two types:

 Aerobic decomposition (Aerobic Oxidation)

 Anaerobic decomposition (Putrefaction)

 The organic matter in sewage consists of urea from urine, proteins, carbohydrates, fats
and oils and soaps.

 These are normally composed of a combination of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen,

together with nitrogen in some cases.

15
 Other important elements, such as Sulphur, phosphorus, and iron, may also be
present.
 The organic matter present in sewage is unstable and decomposes readily through
chemical and bacterial action.

 In the process of decomposition which is bio-chemic in nature, highly complex

organic matter present in sewage is decomposed into materials or constituents of
much simpler chemical structure.

 The organic matter which can be decomposed by bacteria under biological action is
called biodegradable organic matter.

 The decomposition of such organic matter takes place through the agency of different
types of bacteria viz., aerobic bacteria, anaerobic bacteria and facultative bacteria.
 The nitrogenous and carbonaceous materials present in sewage serve as food for these
bacteria.

 The decomposition of organic matter by bacteria under biological action is termed as

biological decomposition.

 AEROBIC DECOMPOSITION:
 If air or oxygen is available freely to the waste water in dissolved form, then the
biodegradable organic matter will undergo aerobic decomposition.

 Aerobic decomposition is caused by both aerobic bacteria as well as facultative

bacteria operating aerobically.

 These bacteria will then utilize the free oxygen as electron acceptor, thereby oxidizing
the organic matter to stable and unobjectionable end products.
 During this process, organic matter is broken up and oxidized to form stable and non-
objectionable end products such as carbon dioxide, nitrates, sulphates are formed.

 Sewage treatment units which work on aerobic decomposition process alone are
aeration tanks, trickling filters, contact beds, oxidation ponds, etc.

16
 Figure No.2
 It may be noted that during the decomposition of nitrogenous organic matter, the
ammonia formed in the initial stages, may linger on till the end depending upon the
available oxygen, retention time, temperature, biological activity etc. because the
facultative bacteria are incapable or break ammonia to nitrates.

 STEPS IN THE NITROGEN CYCLE:

 Nitrogenous organic matter gets oxidized to ammonia, then to nitrites and finally to
nitrates, which when consumed by plants through photosynthesis.

 The plant proteins when consumed by animal from animal proteins.

 The wastes produced by animals and their dead bodies will again form nitrogenous
organic matter thus completing nitrogen cycle.
 Some short circuits of the cycle as shown by dotted lines that dead plants may also on
death lead to formation of organic matter directly without changing into animal
proteins.

 Similarly nitrates on denitrification get converted into free nitrogen which may be
converted into plant proteins as it may be used by certain bacteria residing in the plant
roots.
This is called Nitrogen Fixation.

17
 SULPHUR CYCLE

Figure No.3

 STEPS IN THE SULPHUR CYCLE:

 The sulphurous organic matter on oxidation produces H2 S gas which on further

oxidation changes to Sulphur and then finally to sulphates.

 Sulphates when consumed by plants through photosynthesis change into plant

proteins which eaten by animals changes into animal proteins.
 The wastes produced by animals and their dead bodies will again form sulphurous
organic matter thus completing the Sulphur cycle.

 Some short circuits of the cycle as shown by dotted lines that organic sulphurous
matter may be directly formed by the death of plants without formation of animal
proteins.
 Similarly sulphates in the absence of O 2 will be converted into H 2S by the process of
reduction.

18
 CARBON CYCLE

Figure No.4

 STEPS IN THE CARBON CYCLE:

 The carbonaceous organic matter on oxidation releases CO 2 which is its final end
product.
 This CO2 when used by plants through photosynthesis gets converted into plant
carbohydrates, fats and proteins which when eaten by animals, change into animal fats
and proteins.

 The wastes produced by animals and their dead bodies will again form carbonaceous
organic matter, thus completing the carbon cycle.

 Some short circuits in the cycle as shown by the dotted lines that organic
carbonaceous matter may be directly formed by the death of plants.

 Similarly, plant life gives off CO2 at night, animal life gives off CO2 during
respiration.

19
 NITROGEN, CARBON & SULPHUR CYCLE

Figure No.5

 ANAEROBIC DECOMPOSITION:
 If free dissolved oxygen is not available to the sewage, then anaerobic decomposition
called putrefaction will occur.

 Anaerobic bacteria as well as facultative bacteria operating an aerobically will then

flourish and convert the complex organic matter into simplest organic compounds of
nitrogen, carbon and sulphur.

 These anaerobic bacteria survive by extracting and consuming the bounded molecular
oxygen present in compounds like nitrates and sulphates.

 Gases like ammonia, nitrogen, hydrogen sulphide, methane etc. are also evolved in
this decomposition producing obnoxious odours.
 Sewage treatment units which work on putrefaction alone are septic tanks, Imhoff
tanks, sludge digestion tanks, etc.

20
 SCHOOL OF BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

UNIT – IV – TREATMENT OF SEWAGE – SCI 1306

– SCIA1301

1
 OBJECTIVES OF WASTEWATER TREATMENT
 The purpose of waste water treatment is to remove contaminant from water so that the
treated water can meet the acceptable quality standard.
 The quality standard usually depends whether the water will be reused or discharged
into river.
 Before disposing of sewage into river or land, sewage has to be treated to make it safe
and to make it harmless.
 Methods of waste water treatment depends on composition of waste water and
required quality for treated water.
 Treatment process are broadly classified as physical, chemical and biological
treatments.
 Physical treatment methods utilize physical separation of pollutant such as by
filtration etc.
 Chemical treatment methods utilize chemical characteristics of pollutant for
purification. For e.g. Coagulation etc.
 Biological treatment methods utilize biological characteristics of pollutants such as
bacteria, viruses by purification.
 Other purpose of waste water treatment includes:
 To reduce strength of sewage
 To make waste water less offensive
 To prevent public health from toxic effect of pollutant
 To conserve nature

2
 LAYOUT OF SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT

Figure No.1
UNIT OPERATIONS:
 Unit operations are the treatment methods, in which the applications of physical
forces are carried out.
 Example: Screening, Flocculation, Sedimentation.
UNIT PROCESSES:
 Unit processes are the treatment methods, in which the chemical or biological
activities are involved.
 Example: Chemical Preparation, Gas Transfer, Adsorption, Disinfection, Combustion
etc.
STEPS OF SEWAGE TREATMENT PROCESS:
 The four processes are:
 Preliminary Treatment
 Primary Treatment
 Secondary or Biological Treatment
 Tertiary or Advanced or Final Treatment.

3
PRELIMINARY TREATMENT OF WASTEWATER:
 It is the first stage in treatment process, in which the floating materials such as tree
branches, dead animals, papers, pieces of rags, wood etc. are separated from the
sewage.
 FUNCTIONS OF PRIMARY TREATMENT:
Removes oils and greases.
Reduces the BOD of sewage about 25 %.
Removes larger settleable, in-organic solids etc.
 Some of the treatment technique applied for preliminary treatment purpose are:
 Screening
 Grit removal
 Skimming
 SCREENING:
 Screening is the first unit operation in waste water treatment plants.
 Screens are devices with openings of uniform size and the screening units may
consists of parallel bars, rods, gratings or wire mesh or perforated plates.
 Screens may be of any shape and generally they are rectangular or circular.
 PURPOSE:
 Screening is used to remove the floating matters of comparatively larger in size like
plastics, clothes, dead animals from waste water.

Figure No.2

4
 If the larger materials are not removed, they will clog or damage the valves,
appurtenances, small pipes and pumps etc.
 LOCATION:
 The screens are generally located just prior to the grit chambers.
 If the quality of grit is not much importance, the screens may be placed after grit
chambers.
 Sometimes the screens may be located along with grit chambers.
 The screens are generally placed in inclined position with an angle of 45° (varies from
30° to 60°) with horizontal direction of flow.
 TYPES OF SCREENS:
 Screens are classified,
 According to the size of openings:
 Coarse Screen
 Medium
 Fine Screen
According to the movement of screens:
 Fixed Screen
 Movable Screen
 Moving Screen
 COARSE SCREEN:
 The coarse screens are also called as racks are having the space between the bars of
40 mm.
 The coarse screens reduce the organic load of sewage considerably.
 Hand cleaned coarse screens are generally set at an angle of 45 inclination to the
direction of flow.
 Mechanically cleaned coarse screens are generally set almost vertically.
 MEDIUM SCREEN:
 Medium screens are having the opening of 6 mm to 40 mm.
 It removes organic load of sewage to small extent and it is not much significance in
the further treatment.

5
 FINE SCREEN:
 Fine screens are mechanically cleaned devices using perforated plate of very closely
spaced bars with clear openings of less than 6 mm.
 They are used for pre-treatment of industrial wastes to remove materials which tend to
produce excessive scum or foam on the top of the digestion tank contents.
 Fine screens are generally not suitable for sewage because of clogging of screens.
 Fine screens are mechanically cleaned and may be of drum or disc type and
continuously operated by electric motors.
 Fine screens are generally made of metal plates.
 FIXED SCREEN:
 Fixed screens are permanently set in position.
 A perforated platform is provided to receive the material collected from the screen
bars.
 MOVABLE SCREEN:
 The movable screens are stationary during their operation.
 But during cleaning and maintenance, they can be lifted up and removed from their
position.
 MOVING SCREEN:
 The moving screens are moving during their operating period and they are
automatically cleaned when they are in motion.
 DISPOSAL OF SCREENINGS:
 Following four methods are generally adopted for the disposal of screenings:
 Burial
 Incineration
 Disintegration
Fertilizer
 BURIAL:
 In this method, screenings are buried in the ground and this is adopted only for small
works.
 Sometimes screenings are buried along with quick lime.
 The major disadvantage of this method requires very deep excavation in order to get
complete decomposition of screenings and to avoid bad odours.

6
 A cover of about 300 mm to 500 mm depth of porous earth is to be provided on the
top of the screenings.
 INCINERATION:
 It is defined as the process of burning the screenings at high temperatures, about 760°
C to 840° C.
 The screening, after dewatering are then burnt in coal, gas furnace at high
temperatures.
 This is the most effective method for large works.
 In this method, screenings are dewatered either by pressing or centrifuging.
 In pressing method, the screenings are placed in a cylindrical drum and then it is
pressed by using a piston of heavy weight under pressure.
 In centrifuging method, the cylinder is rotated.
 DISINTEGRATION:
 In this method, the screenings are diluted with water, the dilution factor being kept as
about 60 to 100.
 The diluted screenings are then passing through the disintegrators.
 The disintegrator breaks the screening into small pieces.
 These small pieced screenings are then allowed to join the flow of sewage on the
upstream of the screen.
 FERTILIZER:
 The screenings contain good fertilizing value and with some special precautions,
screenings may be used as fertilizer.
 It is not advisable to use the screenings for crops which are consumed or eaten raw.
 GRIT BASINS or GRIT CHANNELS:
• Sewage contains both organic and inorganic materials, and grit is the heavy mineral
material found in raw sewage, it may contain sand, gravel, silt, cinders, broken glass,
small fragments of metal and other inorganic solids.
• Grits are small, non-biodegradable particles which are heavier than suspended organic
matters.
• Grits are removed by carefully regulating the flow velocity of sewage in grit removal
tank.
• They reduce the excessive accumulation of grit in such units.
 Grit chambers are provided to remove grit, sand and other inorganic matter from the
sewage.

7
 Grit chambers are provided to protect moving mechanical equipment from abrasion.
 They reduce the formation of heavy deposits in channels, pipelines or conduits.
 LOCATION:
 Grit chambers are placed after pumping stations and before the screens.
 Due to some practical considerations, grit chamber may be placed after screens also.
 SOURCES:
 The grit in sewage is obtained from domestic sewage, floors of garages and service
stations, first storm of the season etc.
 Grit may enter the sewage through storm water discharge of road washings and from
kitchens.
 TYPES OF GRIT CHAMBERS:
 Horizontal Flow Type
 Vertical Flow Type
 CLEANING DEVICES:
The grit accumulated at the bottom of the grit chambers can be cleaned periodically
by the following three methods.
 Manual Cleaning
 Mechanical Cleaning
 Hydraulic Cleaning
 MANUAL CLEANING:
• Grit chambers are cleaned by labour.
• The maintenance of good sanitary conditions is also not always possible in this
method.
• However, it is always to be provided manual cleaning of grit chambers, when the
sewage is very dirty.
 MECHANICAL CLEANING:
• In this type, mechanical devices such as buckets, scrapers, elevators are used to
remove the grit from grit chamber.
• It is possible to maintain the mechanically cleaned grit chamber in good sanitary
conditions.
 HYDRAULIC CLEANING:
• Grit may be removed by making use of hydraulic pressure from the bottom of the grit
chamber.
8
• This method is not suitable for all situations and when other two methods fail; this
method is being used.
• This will cause unhealthy conditions.
• DISPOSAL OF GRIT:
• Grit is disposed of mostly in the low-lying areas to reclaim such lands. It can also be
mixed with poor soil to condition it.
 OIL AND GREASE REMOVAL:
 Grease in sewage includes fats, waxes, free fatty acids, calcium and magnesium
soaps, mineral oils and other non-fatty materials.
 Oil and grease are obtained from restaurants, kitchens, garages, soap and candle
factories, oil refineries and slaughter houses.
 The oil and grease create following severe problems and difficulties in sewerage
system.
• If sewage with oil and grease is disposed into the stream, the foul odour may be
produces at the surface of the stream.
• They reduce the efficiency of other treatment units and clog the trickling filter.
• The digestion of oils and grease is a difficult one for sludge digestion tank.
• They affect the biological action of microorganism.
• They can be removed from sewage either by floatation or as a scum or sludge.
• Formation of scum is promoted by diffusing air through sewage.
 SKIMMING:
 Skimming is the process of removal of fatty and oily material from sewage.
 In this method, sewage is placed in skimming tank and it is aerated from bottom so
that fats and oils are collected at top of the liquid which are then removed by
skimming.
 The tank in which scum formation is carried out by diffusion of air through the
sewage is called skimming tanks.
 DISPOSAL OF SKIMMIMGS:
 The oil and greasy materials removed by skimming tanks are disposed either by
burning or burial.
 Sometimes, the disposal of skimmings can be converted into soap lubricants, candle
and other non-edible products.
 Sometimes, it may be digested in digesters, when the vegetable and organic matters
present are more, and when this is more, digest easily and produces high fuel value
gases.
9
 PRIMARY TREATMENT OF WASTEWATER
 After removal of floatable solids, grits and fats, next step in treatment is removal of
remaining suspended solids as much as possible.
 The main objective of primary treatment is to reduce strength of sewage by removing
suspended materials.
 Some common technique applied for primary treatment of sewage are:
 Sedimentation tanks
 Imhoff tanks
 Septic tanks
 Chemical precipitation tanks
 SEDIMENTATION:
 Sedimentation tank is used for removal of suspended solids and some organic matters.
 The process of sedimentation reduces the strength of sewage to the extent of about 30
to 35 percent.
 The quantity of settleable solids in the sewage is reduced to the extent of about 80 to
90 %.
 About 30 to 35 % of BOD is removed.
 If the velocity of flow of sewage is reduced, the suspended particles present in the
sewage, tend to settle at the bottom of the tank.
 The material collected at the bottom of the tank is called sludge and the partially
treated sewage are called effluent.
 Sedimentation tanks are also known as settling tanks or wastewater clarifiers.
TYPES OF SEDIMENTATION TANK:
 Classification based on the purpose:
 Grit Chamber
 Plain sedimentation
 Chemical Precipitation tank
 Septic tank
 Imhoff tank
 Secondary settling tank
 Classification based on direction of flow:
 Horizontal flow settling tank

10
 Vertical flow settling tank
 Radial flow settling tank
 Classification based on nature of working:
 Fill and Draw type
 Continuous flow type
 Classification based on location:
 Primary sedimentation tank
 Secondary sedimentation tank

11
Figure No.3

12
 RECTANGULAR SEDIMENTATION TANK

Figure No.4
CONSTRUCTION DETAILS OF RECTANGULAR TANK:
• Inlet and Outlet Arrangements
• Baffles
• Skimming Troughs
• Cleaning and Sludge Removal

13
 INLET AND OUTLET ARRANGEMENTS:
In order to distribute the uniform flow, some special arrangement is to be made for
smooth entry of sewage.
The most suitable type of an inlet for a rectangular tank is in the form of a channel
extending to full width of the tank with a submerged weir type baffle wall.
The similar type of outlet arrangement is used for the smooth exit of the sewage.
It consists of an outlet, extending for full width of the tank and receiving the waste
water after it has passed over a weir.
 BAFFLES:
Baffles are required to prevent the movement of organic matter and its escape along
with effluent.
Baffles are provided in the form of troughs or boards for the following purposes:
 To prevent the entry of floating substances into the outlet channel.
 To distribute the sewage uniformly through the cross section of the tank.
 SKIMMING TROUGHS:
When the amount of oils and greasy matters present in sewage is small, it is
uneconomical to provide a separate skimming tank.
In such cases, a skimming trough is provided near its outlet end of sedimentation tank.
In manually operated tanks, skimmings that float on surface may be pushed into
trough by squeezes with hand.
In mechanically operated tanks, skimmings may be pushed by a same scraper blades
which collect sludge while moving bottom and push the skimmings into trough when
they move near the surface along with endless chain to which they are attached.
 CLEANING AND SLUDGE REMOVAL:
 Suspended organic solids settle down at the bottom of tank and is to be removed
periodically.
 It is necessary before it becomes stale and septic.
 It is necessary because it reduces the capacity of tank and its detention period.
 Also, it leads to the evolution of foul gases formed due to anaerobic decomposition.
 Hence cleaning is to done from time to time at frequent intervals, either manually or
mechanically.
 For tanks without mechanical sludge removing equipment additional minimum depth
of about 0.8 - 1.2 m should be provided for storage of settled materials and is called
sludge zone.

14
ADVANTAGES OF RECTANGULAR SEDIMENTATION TANK:

Figure No.5

15
16
ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES OF CIRCULAR SEDIMENTATION TANK:

17
HOPPER BOTTOM SEDIMENTATION TANK:

Figure No.6

18
DESIGN FACTORS FOR GRIT CHAMBER:
DEPTH: Minimum depth of 0.3 m.
DETENTION PERIOD: 45 to 90 minutes, Generally 60 minutes is adopted for design
purpose.
VELOCITY OF FLOW: 0.2 m/sec to 0.32 m/sec, Generally 0.3 m/sec.
NUMBER OF UNITS: At least 2 units should be provided.
PROBLEMS ( GRIT CHAMBER ):
1. Design a grit chamber for the treatment of dry weather flow of 12 MLD.
Solution:
Dry weather flow = 12 MLD = 12 X 106 l/day
Design flow = 3 X 12 X 106 = 36 X 106 l/day
Assume detention period as 1 minute.
Volume of flow = 36 X 106 = 25 m3.
24 X 60 X 103
Assume the effective depth as 1.5 m,
Surface area = 25 / 1.5 = 16.7 m2.
Take length to width ratio as L/B = 8/1
Surface area, A = L X B

19
 16.7 = 8B X B
16.7 = 8 B2
B2 = 16.7/8
B = 1.44 m or 1.4 m.
L = 8 X B = 8 X 1.4 = 11.2 m or 11 m.
Provide a free board of 0.3 m,
Overall depth, D = 1.5 + 0.3 = 1.8 m.
Provide 2 Nos. of grit chambers ( 11 m X 1.4 m X 1.8 m ), one to take care of maximum flow
and other for dry weather flow.
2. A Grit chamber with a flow at its outlet to be designed to handle a sewage flow from a
population of 50,000 and a per capita daily consumption of water of 135 Litres. Design the
grit chamber.
Solution:
Average quantity of sewage = 135 X 50000 = 6.75 X 106 l/day.
= 6.75 X 106 / 103 X 24 X 60
= 4.6875 m3/min.
Maximum Flow = 2.5 X 4.6875 = 11.71 m3/min = 11.71/60 = 0.1953 m3/sec.
Keeping the horizontal velocity of sewage inside the grit chamber as 20 cm/sec, detention
period as 1 minute and depth of water as 1 m.
Length of grit chamber, L = V X T = 20 X 60 = 1200 cm or 12 m.
Capacity of chamber, C = Q X T = 0.1953 X 60 = 11.72 m3 or 12 m3
Area of flow, A = C/L = 12/12 = 1 m2
Width of chamber, B = A/D = 1/1 = 1 m.
Provide grit chamber of size 12 X 1 X 1.3 m ( 1 + 0.3 )
DESIGN FACTORS FOR SEDIMENTATION TANK:
RATIO OF LENGTH TO WIDTH: The ratio of length to width is about 4 to 5.
DETENTION TIME: Varies from 1 to 3 hours, generally 2 hours.
OVERFLOW RATE: 40 to 50 m3/m2/day.
VELOCITY OF FLOW: 0.3 m/sec.
PROBLEMS ( SEDIMENTATION TANK )
3. Design a primary settling tank for a town of population 34000. The formation of sewage
may be assumed at 150 litres/capita/day.
20
Solution:
Daily flow of sewage = Rate of sewage flow X Population = 150 X 34000
= 5100000 litres.
Assume a detention period of 2 hours is assumed.
Capacity of the tank = Flow of sewage X Detention time = 5100000/24 X 2
= 425000 litres = 425 m3.
Assume an effective depth of 2.5 m,
Surface area = 425/2.5 = 170 m2.
If Length is 4 times the breadth, l = 4 b
lXb = 170
4 b X b = 170
4 b2 = 170
b = 170/4 = 6.5 m.
l = 4 X 6.5 = 26 m.
Overflow rate = 5100/ (26 X 6.5) = 30.18 m3/m2/day
The overflow rate limit should be within 40 to 50 m3/m2/day. Hence the above design is
neglected and redesigning should be done by assuming a detention period of 1 hour 20
minutes.
Tank Capacity = 5100/24 X 1.33 = 282.625 m3.
Surface Area = 282.625/2.5 = 113.05 m2
If Length is 4 times the breadth, l = 4 b
lXb = 113.05
4 b X b = 113.05
4 b2 = 113.05
b = 113.05/4 = 5.32 m.
l = 4 X 5.32 = 21.28 = 21.3 m.
Overflow rate = 5100/ (21.3 X 5.32) = 45.05 m3/m2/day.
Hence the design is o.k.
Provide 4 m for inlet and outlet arrangements.
Total length of the tank = 21.3 + 4 = 25.3 m.
Provide 1 m depth for sludge accumulation and 0.5 m for free board.
21
Total Depth = 2.5 + 1 + 0.5 = 4 m.
Dimension of the tank is 25.3 m X 5.3 m X 4 m.
Provide one addition unit as stand by unit.
For circular tank, Surface area = 113.05 m2
π X d2/4 = 113.05
d2 = 113.05 x 4/ π = 143.93
d = 11.99 m = 12 m.
Diameter of the tank = 12 m.
4. Design a rectangular sedimentation tank for treating 4.5 million litres per day adopting L:B
ratio as 2, overflow rate 20 m3/m2/day and detention time of 3 hours.
Solution:
Quantity of sewage = 4.5 X 106 / 1000 = 4500 m3/day.
Capacity of the tank = Quantity x Detention Period = (4500/24) X 3 = 562.5 m3
Surface area of the tank = Capacity of the tank/Surface loading rate
= 562.5/20 = 28.125 m2.
If Length is 2 times the breadth, l = 2 b
lXb = 28.125
2 b X b = 28.125
2 b2 = 28.125
b2 = 28.125/2 , b = 3.75 m = 4 m.
l = 2 X 4 = 8 m.
Depth of the tank = Capacity of the tank/ Area of cross section = 562.5/4 X 8 = 4.4 m.
Dimension of the tank is 8 m X 4 m X 4.4 m.
5. If a circular sedimentation tank of diameter 35 m treats 20 million litres of sewage daily,
what is the applicable surface loading rate?
Solution:
Surface loading rate = Quantity / Surface area = 20000 = 20000 X 4
π X d2/4 π X 352
= 20.7876 m3/m2/day.

22
6. A primary settling tank of diameter 40 m is used for treating sewage 10 million litres daily,
what is the applicable weir loading rate?
Solution:
Weir loading rate = Quantity / d = 10000 / 40
= 250 m3/m2/day.
7. Design a circular sewage sedimentation tank for a town having population of 40,000. The
average water demand is 140 l/cap/day. Assume that 70 % water reach at the treatment unit
and maximum demand is 2.7 times the average demand.
Solution:
Average water required = 140 X 40000 = 5.6 X 106 l/day = 5.6 x 103 m3/day.
Average quantity of sewage = (70/100) X 5.6 x 103 = 3.92 X 103 m3/day.
Maximum quantity of sewage = 2.7 X 3.92 X 103 = 10.58 X 103 m3/day.
Q = 10.58 X 103 /24 = 440.8 m3 /hour = 441 m3 /hour.
Assume detention period of 1 hour.
Capacity of tank, C = Q X T = 441 X 1 = 441 m3
Provide effective depth of tank = 3 m.
Surface area of the tank, A = 441/3 = 147 m2
Surface area, A = π X d2/4
147 = π X d2/4
d2 = 147 X 4/ π = 187.16
d = 13.68 m = 13.7 m.
Surface loading rate of the tank = 441 X 24 / 147 = 72 m3/m2/day.
As the surface loading rate is more than 50 m3/m2/day, depth of the tank is to be reduced and
surface area is to be increased.
Adopting the effective depth = 2 m.
Surface area of tank = 441/2 = 220.5 m2
Surface area, A = π X d2/4
220.5 = π X d2/4
d2 = 220.5 X 4/ π
d = 16.75 m = 17 m.
Surface loading rate of the tank = 441 X 24/220.5 = 48 m3/m2/day.

23
Assume a free board of 0.3 m, Overall depth, D = 2 + 0.3 = 2.3 m.
Provide a circular sedimentation tank of 17 m diameter and 2.3 m Overall depth.
8. Design a suitable rectangular sedimentation tank for treating the sewage from a city
provided with public water supply system with a maximum daily demand of 12 MLD.
Assume suitable value of detention period and velocity of flow in the tank.
Solution:
Assuming that 80 % of water supplied to city becomes sewage.
Quantity of sewage to be treated/day = (80/100) X (12 X 106/103)
= 9600 m3
Now assuming the detention period in the sedimentation tank as 2 hours,
Capacity of the tank, C = Q X T = (9600/24) x 2 = 800 m3
Assume that the velocity of flow is 0.3 m/min.
Length of the tank required, L = Velocity of flow x Detention Period
= 0.3 X 2 X 60 = 36 m.
Cross section area of the tank required, A = Capacity/ Length
A = 800/36 = 22.2 m2
Assume effective depth of tank as 3 m.
Width of the tank required, B = 22.2/3 = 7.4 m.
Since the tank is provided with mechanical cleaning arrangements, no extra space at bottom
is required fore sludge zone.
Assume a free board of 0.5 m,
Overall depth of the tank, D = 3 + 0.5 = 3.5 m.
Hence a rectangular sedimentation tank with an overall size of
36 m X 7.4 m X 3.5 m.
9. Design a circular sedimentation tank unit for a primary treatment of sewage at 12 MLD.
Assume suitable detention period and surface loading rate.
Solution:
Quantity of sewage = 12 X 106 l/day.
Assume detention period as 2 hour and surface loading rate as 40000 l/m2/day.
Capacity of the tank, C = (12 X 106/103 X 24) X 2 = 1000 m3
Now, Surface loading = Q/Surface area

24
 40000 = Q/ (π X d2/4)
d2 = 4 X 12 X 106/(π X 40000)
d = 19.6 m.
Now, effective depth of the tank = capacity / C.S.Area
= 1000/(π X 19.62/4)
= 3.3 m.
Assume a free board of 0.3 m,
Overall Depth, D = 3.3 + 0.3 = 3.6 m.
Hence use a settling tank with 19.6 m diameter and 3.6 m Overall depth.
10. Design a primary settling tank of rectangular shape for a town having a population of
50000 with a water supply of 180 l/cap/day.
Solution:
Quantity of water supply = 50000 X 180 = 9 X 106 l/day.
Assuming that 80 % of water supplied to city becomes sewage.
Total sewage flow, Q = (80/100) X 9 X 106 = 7.2 X 106 l/day.
Assume a detention period of 2 hours.
Capacity of tank, C = (7.2 X 106 /24) X 2 = 600 X 103 l = 600 m3
Assume an surface loading rate of 30 m3/m2/day.
Surface area, A = Sewage flow/Surface loading rate = 7.2 X 103 / 30 = 240 m2
Effective Depth, d = Capacity/Surface area = 600/240 = 2.5 m
Take length is 4 times the width, L = 4B.
A=LXB
240 = 4B X B = 4B
B = 7.74 m.
L = 4 X 7.74 = 30. m = 31 m.
Provide 4 m length for inlet and outlet arrangements.
Total Length = 31 + 4 = 35 m.
Also provide 1 m depth for sludge accumulation and 0.5 m free board.
Hence Overall Depth, D = 2.5 + 1 + 0.5 = 4 m.
Hence provide a rectangular sedimentation tank size of 35 m X 7.7 m X 4 m.

25
SEDIMENTATION WITH COAGULATION:
 Very fine suspended particles of wastewater cannot be removed by plain or primary
sedimentation tank and they can be settled by increasing their size by changing them
into flocculated particles.
 Sedimentation with coagulation is defined as the process of removing the very fine
suspended particles present in the waste water that cannot be removed by primary
sedimentation by increasing their size by using chemicals.
 The chemicals used for increasing the size of the particles are called coagulants.
 The various chemicals or coagulants are:
 Alum
 Ferric Chloride
 Ferric Sulphate
 Chlorinated Copperas.
 The coagulants mixed with water forms a gelatinous precipitate called floc, which
attracts the fine mud particles and other colloidal matters form a bigger sized
flocculated particles.
 The process of adding the chemicals is called coagulation and the formation of bigger
sized flocculate particles is called flocculation.
SEPTIC TANK:

Figure No.7
26
  A septic tank is defined as a primary sedimentation tank with a longer detention
period 12 to 36 hours with an additional provisions for digestion of the settled sludge.
 Due to anaerobic decomposition of the settled sludge, foul gases will be evolved in
the tank and the septic tank will be completely covered and provided with a high air
vent pipe for escape of gases.
 Septic tanks are provided in places, where sewer pipes have not been laid and
especially septic tanks are provided for isolated communities, schools, hospitals,
hotels and other isolated public institutions etc.
CONSTRUCTION DETAILS:
 A septic tank is a horizontal continuous flow sedimentation tank, in which the raw
sewage is directly entering to the tank.
 The tank removes 60 to 70 % of the dissolved matter.
 The effluent from the septic tank is foul in nature and it should be disposed of either
in soak pits or to be treated in trickling filters before it disposing of into water
courses.
 The septic tank is rectangular in shape and constructed by brick masonry.
 The tank is designed to prevent the direct currents between the tank inlet and outlet.
 The standing baffle wall at the outlet of the tank is provided to work as a skimming to
retain the scum in the tank.
 In order to prevent the odour, due to the bacteriological action, the tank is covered at
top with RCC which prevents the escape of foul gases, prevents the accidents due to
falling of animals and children and prevents wind agitation.
 An air vent pipe is provided at suitable place of the tank at a suitable height for the
escape of air and foul gases for the prevention of odour.
 R.C.C manhole covers are provided at the top of the tank, for inspection, repairs and
maintenance.
 The deposited and digested sludge is removed from these manhole at an interval of 6
to 12 months with the help of a portable pump.
 ADVANTAGES:
 Construction is very easy.
 Very reasonable cost for construction.
 Very little attention and skilled attendance is required.
 There are no moving parts for its operation.
27
 Sludge is relatively small, most of its being liquified and digested.
 The removal of BOD is 90 % and suspended solids removal is 80 %, considerably
septic tank is having high performance.
 The sludge, effluent and scum obtained from the septic tank can be disposed off easily
without causing serious nuisance.
 DISADVANTAGES:
 If the tank is not properly functioning, the effluent will be dark and foul smelling.
 The leakage of gases through the top of the septic tank leads to air pollution.
 The working of septic tank is unpredictable and non-uniform.
 The removal of sludge is a very tedious job.
 DESIGN FACTORS FOR SEPTIC TANK:
Detention Period: It varies between 12 to 36 Hours, Commonly adopted as 24 Hours.
Length to Width Ratio: For Rectangular tank, length is 2 to 4 times the width.
Depth: Range between 1.2 to 1.8 m.
Space for Digestion: 0.0425 m3/cap.
Sedimentation: For Indian Conditions, surface area will be 0.92 m2 for every 10 lpm
peak flow rate.
Cleaning Period for Sludge: 6 months to 3 Years, generally taken as 12 Months.
Free Board: 0.3 to 0.6 m.
12. Design a septic tank for a small residential colony having a population of 500
persons. The rate of water supply is 150 litres per head per day. Design also the soak
well, if the effluent from the septic tank is to be discharged in it?
Solution:
Quantity of water supply = Per capita demand X Population
= 500 X 150
= 75000 litres/day.
Assuming that the 80 % of water supply appears as sewage.
Quantity of sewage produced = 75000 X (80/100)
= 60000 l/day.
Assume the detention period of 24 hours.
Capacity of the tank, C = 60000 X 24/24 = 60000 litres.

28
Assuming the rate of deposited sludge as 30 litres/capita/year and assuming the period
of cleaning is one year.
Volume of sludge accumulated = Rate of sludge deposition X Population X period of
Cleaning
= 30 X 500 x 1 = 15000 litres.
Total capacity of the tank = Capacity for sewage + capacity for sludge
= 60000 + 15000
= 75000 litres = 75 m3.
Assuming a depth of 1.5 m.
Surface area of the tank = Capacity/depth = 75/1.5 = 50 m2.
Take ratio of length to width is taken as 1:2 to 1:4.
Assuming L:B = 1:3 or L = 3B
Surface area, A = L X B
A =LXB
50 = 3B X B
50 = 3B2
B2 = 50/3 = 16.66
B = 4.083 m = 4.1 m.
Length of the tank, L = 3 X 4.1 = 12.25 m = 12.3 m.
Assume a free board as 0.3 m, Overall Depth, D = 1.5 + 0.3 = 1.8 m.
Dimension of the tank is 12.3 m X 4.1 m X 1.8 m.
Design of Soak pit:
Assuming the percolating capacity of filter media of soak pit as 1250 litres/m3/day or
1.25 m3/m3/day required for soak pit.
Volume required for soak pit = Volume of the tank/Percolating capacity
of filter media
= 75 / 1.25 = 60 m3
If the depth of the soak pit is 4 m, area of the soak pit will be,
Area of the soak pit = Volume of the soak pit/ Depth of soak pit
= 60/4 = 15 m2
π X d2/4 = 15
29
 d2 = 15 X 4 / π
d = 4.37 m or 4.4 m.
13. Design a septic tank for 50 users, assuming the rate of water supply as 60
l/cap/day.
Solution:
Assuming the detention period as 24 hours and the time of cleaning the sludge as 3
years.
Space required for Settling = 50 X 60/103 = 3 m3.
Space required for Digestion = 50 X 0.0425 = 2.125 m3.
Space required for Storage of sludge = 50 X 0.085 = 4.25 m3.
Total space required = 3 + 2.125 + 4.25 = 9.375 m3.
Providing depth as 1.4 m,
Surface area, A = Total Space / Depth = 9.375/1.4 = 6.69 = 6.7 m2.
Assume L:B = 1:2, L = 2B
Surface area A = L X B = 2B X B
6.7 = 2B2
B2 = 6.7/2
B = 1.83 m = 1.8 m.
L = 2 X B = 2 X 1.8 = 3.6 m.
Providing a free board as 30 cm,
Overall Depth, D = 1.4 + 0.3 = 1.7 m.
Hence provide the septic tank of size 3.6 m X 1.8 m X 1.7 m.
14.Design the dimensions of a septic tank for a small colony of 150 persons provided
with an assured water supply from the municipal head works at a rate of 120
l/person/day. Assume any data you may need.
Solution:
Quantity of water supplied = per capita rate X population = 120 X 150
= 18000 l/day.
Assuming that 80 % of water supplied becomes sewage.
Quantity of sewage produced = (80/100) X 18000 = 14400 l/day.
Assume the detention time as 24 hours.

30
Capacity of the tank, C = 14400 X 24/24 = 14400 litres.
Now, assuming the rate of deposited sludge as 30 l/capita/year and period of cleaning
as 1 year.
Volume of sludge deposited = 30 X 150 X 1 = 4500 litres.
Total capacity of tank = 14400 + 4500 = 18900 litres or 18.9 m3.
Assuming the depth of the tank as 1.5 m.
Surface area of the tank = 18.9/1.5 = 12.6 m2.
Assume L:B = 1:3 or L = 3B
Surface area, A = L X B
12.6 = 3B X B
12.6 = 3B2
B2 = 12.6/3
B = 2.05 m = 2.1 m.
L = 3 X 2.1 = 6.3 m = 6 m.
Assume a free board of 0.3 m,
Overall depth, D = 1.5 + 0.3 = 1.8 m.
Hence provide the septic tank of size 6 m X 2.1 m X 1.8 m.
15. Design a septic tank for a hostel housing 125 persons.
Solution:
DESIGN OF SEPTIC TANK:
The estimated peak discharge for 125 persons is equal to 300 lpm.
Let us assume sludge withdrawal once in a year.
Surface area of tank @ 0.92 m2 for every 10 lpm is = (0.92/10) X 300 = 27.6 m2.
Assume depth for sedimentation is 0.3 m. Also provide a free board of 0.3 m.
Space for sedimentation = 27.6 X 0.3 = 8.28 m3
Space for digestion = 0.032 X 125 = 4 m3
Space for sludge storage = 0.049 X 125 = 6.125 m3
Space for free board = 27.6 X 0.3 = 8.28 m3
Total space required = 26.685 m3
Total depth of the tank = Total Space/ Surface area

31
 = 26.685/27.6 = 0.96 m or 1 m.
Assume L:B = 1:2.5 or L = 2.5 B
Surface area, A = L X B
27.6 = 2.5 B X B
27.6 = 2.5B2
B2 = 27.6/2.5
B = 3.32 m = 3.3 m.
L = 2.5 X 3.3 = 8.3 m.
Hence dimensions of the septic tank are 8.3 m X 3.3 m.
IMHOFF TANK:
 These tanks are the improvements over the septic tanks.
 Karl Imhoff of Germany invented this tank.
 The Imhoff tank, is a two-storey septic tank, composed of an upper sedimentation
compartment, and a bottom sludge digestion compartment.
 The Imhoff tank is a primary treatment technology for raw wastewater, designed for
solid-liquid separation and digestion of the settled sludge.

Figure No.8
32
 CONSTRUCTION DETAILS:
 Design of upper flow tank is done on the basis of plain sedimentation tank with 1.5 to
2.5 hours detention period.
 Depth of upper flow chamber is kept about 2.5 m.
 The minimum total depth of tank is kept 5 m.
 Design of sludge storage capacity is done on the basis of 0.02 m3/cap.
 Surface overflow rate is kept less than 30000 l/m2/day.
 Gas vent area is provided between 20 to 25 % of the total plan area.
 Minimum slope of 30° is provided to the hopper bottom for easy removal of sludge
through sludge outlet.
 The vertical distance between upper sludge level and slot is known as neutral zone is
kept more than 45 cm.
 Slope of side walls of the lower portion should have steep slope more than 55° to the
horizontal to prevent adhesion of solids to them.
 WORKING:
 First the sewage enters the upper sedimentation tank whose bottom has sharp
inclinations.
 The solids are allowed to settle in the upper tank from where they slip in lower
hoppers through the slots.
 In hoppers, the settled solids remain stored for a long period about 30 – 45 days.
 During this period, they are acted upon by the bacterias and are converted into stable
solids, organic acids and gases.
 The gases are allowed to escape in the atmosphere through gas vent pipe.
 The stabilized solids are taken out by means of a sludge pipe under hydrostatic
pressure.
 The flow of solids in the lower hoppers is regulated by means of a triangular beam
and in that hopper digestion starts.
 Effluent from Imhoff tank is similar to primary settling tank.
 The organic matters are digested in the lower compartments.
 The digested sludge has black colour and has no odour.
 Moisture content of this sludge is 90 – 95 %, therefore it can easily flow in the pipes.
 This moisture can be removed by passing it through sand beds and sun drying.

33
 ADVANTAGES:
 Quite economical in operation.
 Do not require skilled attention during operation.
 There are no moving parts.
 Require only preliminary treatment.
 No difficulty in sludge removal.
 Less sludge volume and weight.
 Results are good with the removal of 60 – 70 % of solids and 30 – 40 % of BOD.
 DISADVANTAGES:
 Because of greater depth, construction cost is high.
 Unsuitable for acidic influents.
 Give offensive odours when improperly operated.
 Very high (or deep) infrastructure, depth may be a problem in case of high
groundwater table.
 Requires expert design and construction.
 Low reduction of pathogens.
 Effluent, sludge and scum require further treatment.
PROBLEMS (IMHOFF TANK)
1. Design an Imhoff tank to treat the sewage from a town with 40000 population. The
suspended solid in the influent sewage are 150 ppm. The water content of sludge is 5
%. If the rate of sewage flow is 135 l/cap/day. Design the tank with two months
storage.
Solution:
Quantity of sewage flow = 135 X 40000 = 54 X 105 l/day or 225000 l/hr.
Assume the detention period as 2 hours.
Design of upper flow channel:
Capacity of the channel = 225000 X 2 = 45 X 104 l or 450 m3
Provide 2 channels 4 m wide, 33 m long with 1 m vertical depth and 1.5 m inclined
depth.
Overall depth = 1 + 1.5 = 2.5 m.
Total volume of both the channels = 2 [ 4 x 33 x 1 + 4 X 33 X 1.5/2]
= 462 m3 > 450 m3
34
 Surface loading = Quantity/Surface area = 225000 X 24 /( 2 X 4 X 33 )
= 20455 l/m2/day < 30000 l/m2/day.
Hence Safe.
2. Design an Imhoff tank for a town having population of 17000 persons. The rate of
sewage is 150 l/day. Assume suitably any other data need.
Solution:
Total flow of sewage = 17000 X 150 = 255 X 104 l/day.
Assume detention period as 2 hours.
DESIGN OF UPPER FLOW CHANNEL:
Capacity of flow channel = 255 X 104 X 2 /( 24 X 1000 ) = 212.5 m3
Provide 2 channels of 2 m X 32 m having 1 m vertical depth and 1.5 m sloping depth.
Volume of the channels = 2 X [2 X 32 X 1 + 2 X 32 X 1.5/2]
= 224 m3 > 212.5 m3
Hence Safe.
DESIGN OF DIGESTION TANK:
Assuming 0.05 m3/cap space required.
Total Capacity = 0.05 X 17000 = 850 m3
Provide 5 m width, vertical depth 4 m and inclined depth 3 m.
Volume of the tank = 5 X 32 X 4 + 5 X 32 X 3/2 = 880 m3 > 850 m3
Hence Safe.

SECONDARY TREATMENT OF WASTE WATER

 The effluent from the primary sedimentation tank consists of 45 to 60 % of unstable
organic matters, originally present in the sewage.
 The larger and medium sized solids have been removed by settling in sedimentation
tanks and the organic matter present in the sewage as colloidal matter is carried away
by effluent from the settling tanks.
 The further treatment of sewage is called secondary treatment or biological treatment
and in which the conversion of organic matter into stable forms by oxidation or
nitrification.
 The secondary treatment of sewage involves various methods and are classified into
two important processes.
 Filtration process

35
 Activated-sludge process.
 All the secondary treatment processes are designed to work on aerobic bacterial
decomposition.
 In secondary treatment, dissolved or colloidal organic matters are present in sewage
are removed by utilizing microorganisms.
 In this steps, microorganisms utilizes organic matter and converts them into inorganic
minerals.
 Following changes occurs in sewage during secondary treatment:
 Organic matter (carbon) is oxidized into CO2 and H2O
 Organic nitrogen compounds are first converted into NH3 and then into NO3
 Colloidal matters are coagulated or precipitated out.
 Thus main purpose of secondary treatment of sewage is to reduce BOD level.
 FILTRATION PROCESS:
 In secondary treatment, the filter units consists of open beds of coarse aggregate
overwhich the sewage is spreaded or sprinkled intermittently.
 The necessary contact surface for the growth of aerobic bacteria is provided by the
aggregates in the bed.
 By doing this, the aeration is provided by nature.
 DIFFERENT TYPES OF FILTERS:
 Contact Beds
 Intermittent Sand Filters
 Trickling Filters

36
CONTACT BEDS

Figure No.9
 In ancient time contact beds were very popular in the treatment of sewage, but now a
days these are similar in construction to the intermittent sand filters, the only
difference being in the filtering media.
 The filtering media consists of 2 to 2.5 cm size broken stone ballast or brick ballast.
 The depth of the filtering media is between 90-150 cm.
 The sewage is uniformly applied over the whole surface of the filtering media, by
means of distribution troughs and is collected at the bottom by means of a system of
under drain pipes.
OPERATION OF THE CONTACT BEDS:
 FILLING:
 In this operation the sewage is applied on the surface of contact beds as quickly as
possible by means of dosing siphon.
 The sewage is allowed to be filled 5-10 cm above the top surface of filter media. The
filling process may take 1 to 1.5 hours.
 CONTACT:
 In this operation, the dosing is stopped and the applied sewage is allowed to come in
contact for about 2 hours.
 During this period, the colloidal matters and dissolved matters get transferred to the
filter media and comes in contact with the bacterial film covering the filter media..
 Within this time the soluble contents of sewage are absorbed by the organic film and
are stabilized.
37
 EMPTYING:
 The contact beds are then slowly emptied and drained.
 This operation is carried out for 1 to 2 hours.
 So that the absorbed soluble contents of the sewage are not washed out with the
sewage, which is being drained.
 RESTING:
 After emptying, the contact beds are allowed to remain at rest for 5-6 hours and this
period is called second contact period.
 Within this period the atmospheric air enters in the voids of the contact media and
makes it ready for taking another sewage load.
 By supplying oxygen to the aerobic bacteria, which oxidize the organic matter present
in the sewage which is transferred by sewage on the surface of the filtering media.
 The complete cycle of operation takes 8-12 hours.
 The stabilized organic matter from the voids is finally taken in the next cycle of
operation.
 As these contact beds are intermittent in action, therefore more numbers of units are
constructed in parallel and the sewage is applied in turn to each unit.
 For this purpose continuous supervision is required.
 The effluent obtained from these beds is also clear and odourless.
 These beds remove 80 to 90% suspended solids and 60 to 75% B.O.D.
 The rate of loading is very low 4500 to 6500 m3/hectare/day.
 The voids inside the filtering media continuously go on reducing due to accumulation
of the solids in them.
 After 4-5 years the filtering media is taken out, washed, dried and filled again.
 Similarly the under drain pipes are also washed and cleaned after 3-4 years.
 These are also not common these days.
 Generally, the contact beds are also intermittent in their operation.
 EFFICIENCY:
 Bacterial Removal – 50 to 75 %.
 Organic matter Removal – 60 to 80 %.
 Suspended matter Removal – 80 to 90 %.

38
 ADVANTAGES:
 Contact bed can be operated without exposing the sewage to view.
 Contact bed consumes relatively small amount of head.
 No nuisance of filter flies.
 Odour problems are also very less.
 DISADVANTAGES:
 For effective working of contact bed, primary treatment of sewage is necessary
otherwise the contact bed will be easily clogged.
 The cost of the contact bed is relatively more.
 The operation of contact bed requires skilled supervision.
 The rate of treatment of sewage is very low.
 It requires long rest period.(about 8 hours)
 USES:
 The contact beds are the best treatment method for small isolated structures, where the
quantity of sewage is very less and head availability is also less and further pumping
is not required.
INTERMITTENT SAND FILTERS:

Figure No.10

39
 These are the early development of sewage treatment units.
 These are similar in Construction to the slow-sand filter of water treatment.
 These require larger area, due to which these are not commonly employed in modern
sewage treatment works.
 The filter media is finer than that in the contact beds.
 There is no concrete lining around the filter media, as was there in contact beds.
 CONSTRUCTION:
 It consists of layers of sands with an effective size of 0.2 to 0.5 mm and of uniformity
coefficient 2 to 5.
 The depth of the sand media is about 75 cm to 100 cm.
 The bottom of the tank is sloping gently towards the under drains.
 The under drains are placed at about 9 m apart in trenches below the bottom of the
filter media.
 If the soil itself is sandy, there is no need of providing extra sand.
 But if the soil is of other variety, sands of the above specifications are laid in a depth
of about 100-120 cm.
 To carry off the effluent the open joint drainage pipes are laid in the bottom of the
sand bed in 90 to 120 cm depth.
 Their drainage pipes are surrounded with layers of coarse stone and gravel graded
from coarse to fine, to keep and the sand out.
 In some cases when the soil itself-sandy, the percolating effluent may reach the
ground water table, and no effluent may reach the drainage pipes.
 The sewage is applied evenly on the surface of the sand bed by influent waste water
troughs.
 The distribution trough has side openings to distribute the sewage uniformly.
 To prevent the scouring and displacement of sand the distribution trough is kept on
concrete apron or protective stone.
 The effluent from the intermittent sand filters is very clear and contains suspended
solids less than 10 ppm which is well nitrified and stable.
 The effluent also has B.O.D. less than 5ppm and is free from odours.
 Therefore, the plant works without creating any nuisance at the site.
 If the quantity of sewage is more 3 to 4 such beds can be constructed in parallel.
 For cleaning these filters, the sand from the top is scraped from time to time and are
refilled with fresh clean sand.
40
 ADVANTAGES:
 Smaller head is required.
 It does not require skilled supervision.
 There is no trouble of odour or insects.
 In some cases, no further treatment is needed except chlorination.
 The effluent obtained from this filter is of good quality with suspended solids level of
less than 10 mg/l and BOD of less than 5 ppm.
 DISADVANTAGES:
 Very slow process.
 Requires larger area of land.
 Not suitable for very cold climates.
 Their rate of loading is very small.
 They cannot treat large quantity of sewage, therefore cannot be employed at big
plants.
 USES:
 It is the best treatment for small isolated structures such as hotels, hospitals etc, where
land and sand is easily available.
 These filters are also sometimes used to treat the effluent of coagulated sedimentation
tanks or trickling filters.
 For such cases, the rate of filtration is kept as about 200000 to 250000
litres/hectare/hour.
 The effluent thus treated has an attractive appearance and it is free from any
suspended matters.

41
 TRICKLING FILTERS:

Figure No.11
 Trickling filters (TFs) are used to remove organic matter from wastewater.
 The TF is an aerobic treatment system that utilizes microorganisms attached to a
medium to remove organic matter from wastewater.
 This type of system is common to a number of technologies such as rotating
biological contactors and packed bed reactors (biotowers).
 These systems are known as attached-growth processes.
 Trickling filter is an attached growth process i.e. process in which microorganisms
responsible for treatment are attached to an inert packing material.
 Packing material used in attached growth processes include rock, gravel, slag, sand,
redwood, and a wide range of plastic and other synthetic materials.
 The wastewater in trickling filter is distributed over the top area of a vessel containing
non-submerged packing material.
 Air circulation in the void space, by either natural draft or blowers, provides oxygen
for the microorganisms growing as an attached biofilm.
 During operation, the organic material present in the wastewater is metabolized by the
biomass attached to the medium.
 The biological slime grows in thickness as the organic matter abstracted from the
flowing wastewater is synthesized into new cellular material.

42
 The thickness of the aerobic layer is limited by the depth of penetration of oxygen
into the microbial layer.
 The micro-organisms near the medium face enter the endogenous phase as the
substrate is metabolized before it can reach the micro-organisms near the medium
face as a result of increased thickness of the slime layer and loose their ability to cling
to the media surface.
 The liquid then washes the slime off the medium and a new slime layer starts to grow.
This phenomenon of losing the slime layer is called sloughing.
 The sloughed off film and treated wastewater are collected by an underdrainage which
also allows circulation of air through filter.
 The collected liquid is passed to a settling tank used for solid- liquid separation.
 ADVANTAGES:
 Can be operated at a range of organic and hydraulic loading rates.
 The mechanical wear and tear is small as it contains less mechanical equipment.
 Resistant to shock loadings.
 Efficient nitrification (ammonium oxidation)
 High effluent quality in terms of BOD and suspended solids removal; in combination
with a primary and tertiary treatment also in terms of pathogens.
 The moisture content of sludge obtained from the trickling filters is as high as
99 %.
 Low power requirements.
 The working of trickling filters is simple and it does not require skilled supervision.
 The trickling filters may reduce the B.O.D and colloidal matter to the extent of about
75 % and 80 % respectively.
 The trickling filters are flexible in operation.
 DISADVANTAGES:
 The cost of construction of trickling filters is high.
 Requires large land area and regular operator attention.
 Vector and odour problems.
 Incidence of clogging is relatively high.
 The process requires primary treatment of sewage and hence, the raw sewage cannot
be purified by this process.

43
 USES:
 The process of trickling filters is becoming popular at present and the trickling filters,
especially of high rate type are adopted in the modern treatment plant of sewage.
TYPES OF FILTERS:
 Conventional or Ordinary or Standard rate or Low rate trickling filter.
 High rate trickling filter.
Efficiency of Low rate trickling filter, ƞ = 100

1 + 0.44
Where, U – Organic loading Kg/ m3/day
Efficiency of high rate trickling filter, ƞ = 100

1 + 0.44
Where, Y – Total Org. loading in Kg/day.
V - Filter Volume in m3
F – Recirculation Factor.

44
COMPARISON OF LOW RATE & HIGH RATE TRICKLING
FILTER

45
PROBLEMS
1.The sewage flows from a primary settling tank to a standard rate trickling filter at a
rate of 5 ML/day having 5 day BOD of 150 mg/l. Determine the depth and volume of
filter adopting a surface loading of 2500 l/m2/day and an organic loading of 165
gm/m3/day. Also determine the efficiency of filter unit using NRC formula.
Solution:
Total 5 day BOD/day = 5 X 106 X 150 X 10-3 = 75 X 104 gm.
Volume of filter media required = Total BOD/Organic loading = 75 X 104 /165
= 4545.5 m3
Surface area required = Total Flow/Hydraulic loading
A = 5 X 106 /2500 = 2000 m2
Depth of bed = Volume/surface Area = 4545.5/2000 = 2.273 m or 2.3 m.
Hence provide a filter depth of 2.3 m.
A = π X d2/4
2000 = π X d2/4
d2 = 2000 X 4/ π
d = 50.5 m.
Hence provide a filter of 50 m diameter.
Actual surface area = π X 502/4 = 1963.5 m2
Actual Volume = 1963.5 X 2.3 = 4516 m3
Actual Org.loading,U = Total BOD/Volume of filter = 75 X 104 / 4516
= 166.1 gm/m3/day
U = 166.1 gm/m3/day or 0.1661 Kg/m3/day
Efficiency, ƞ = 100

1 + 0.44
= 100

1 + 0.44
= 84.8 %.

46
2. The sewage is flowing @ 4.5 ML/day from a primary clarifier to a standard rate
trickling filter. The 5 day BOD of influent is 160 mg/l. Organic loading is 160
gm/m/day and surface loading 2000 l/m/day. Determine the volume, depth and
efficiency of filter.
Solution:
Total 5 day BOD/day = 4.5 X 106 X 160 X 10-3 = 72 X 104 gm.
Volume of filter media required = Total BOD/Organic loading = 72 X 104 /160
= 4500 m3
Surface area required = Total Flow/Hydraulic loading
A = 4.5 X 106 /2000 = 2250 m2
Depth of bed = Volume/surface Area = 4500/2250 = 2 m.
Hence provide a filter depth of 2 m.
A = π X d2/4
2000 = π X d2/4
d2 = 2250 X 4/ π
d = 53.52 m or 54 m.
Hence provide a filter of 54 m diameter.
Actual surface area = π X 542/4 = 2290.2 m2
Actual Volume = 2290.2 X 2 = 4580.4 m3
Actual Org.loading,U = Total BOD/Volume of filter = 72 X 104 / 4580.4
= 157.19 gm/m3/day or 0.1567 Kg/ m3/day
Efficiency, ƞ = 100

1 + 0.44
= 100

1 + 0.44 57
= 85.1 %.
3.Determine the size of a high rate trickling filter for the following data:
Flow - 4.5 MLD
47
Recirculation Ratio (R/I)= 1.4
BOD of raw sewage = 250 mg/l.
BOD removed in primary clarifier = 25 %
Final effluent BOD desired = 50 mg/l.
Calculate also the size of the standard rate trickling filter to accomplish the above
requirement.
Solution:
Total BOD present in raw sewage/day = 4.5 X 250 = 1125 X (106/106) = 1125 Kg.
BOD removed in the primary clarifier = 25 %
BOD entering/day in the filter units = 1125 X (75/100) = 843.75 Kg.
BOD concentration in the effluent = 50 mg/l.
BOD allowed to go into the effluent = 50 X 4.5 X (106/106) = 225 Kg.
BOD removed by the filter/day = 843.75 – 225 = 618.75 Kg.
Efficiency of filter = (BOD removed/Total BOD) X 100
= (618.75/843.75) X 100 = 73.3 %
Efficiency of high rate trickling filter, ƞ = 100

1 + 0.44
F= 1 + R/I = 1 + 1.4 = 1.85
[1 + 0.1 (R/I)]2 (1 + 0.1 X 1.4)2
73.3 = 100

1 + 0.44
V = 665.4 m3.
Assume a depth of filter as 1.5 m.
Surface area required, A = 665.4/1.5 = 413.6 m2.
A = π X d2/4
413.6 = π X d2/4
d2 = 413.6 X 4/ π
d = 23.8 m.

48
 For an equivalent standard filter, F = 1.

73.3 = 100

1 + 0.44
V = 1231 m3.
Using depth of filter as 1.5 m, A = 1231/1.5 = 820.8 m2.
A = π X d2/4
820.8 = π X d2/4
d2 = 820.8 X 4/ π
d = 32.3 m.

ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS

 In secondary treatment, the ASP consists of aeration tanks of long detention period, in
which activated sludge is mixed with sedimented sewage is agitated and aerated.
 The sludge coming from the secondary sedimentation tank is called activated sludge
and contains more quantity of biologically active oxygen.
 In the sewage treatment there are two de-composition process takes place.
 Aerobic Decomposition Process
 Anaerobic Decomposition Process

49
 Figure No.12
 In secondary treatment process, only aerobic decomposition occurs and aerobic
decomposition has the following advantages over anaerobic decomposition.
 Aerobic decomposition does not produce bad smells and gases.
 More active than anaerobic bacteria – the rate of doing work by aerobic bacteria is
three times the work doing by anaerobic bacteria at 30°C.
 Activated sludge process is a process for treating sewage and waste water commonly
referred as effluent using bacteria (to degrade the biodegradable organics) and air
(Oxygen for respiration).
 Activated sludge refers to a mixture of microorganisms and suspended solids.
 The sewage effluent from the primary sedimentation tank is mixed with 25 % of its
own volume of activated sludge.
 The activated sludge contains a larger concentration of highly active aerobic micro-
organism.
 The mixture of sewage effluent and activated sludge enters an aeration tank, where
micro-organism is mixed together with a large quantity of air, for a period of about 4
to 8 hours.
 Under this condition, the micro-organisms will oxidize the organic matter and the
suspended and colloidal matter tends to coagulate and form a precipitate.
 This precipitate settles down in the secondary sedimentation tank instantly.
50
 The settled sludge called activated sludge is again recycled to the head of aeration
tank and again mixed with raw sewage.
 Activated sludge is being produced continuously by this process and a portion of
produced activated sludge is utilized in aeration tank.
 The excess of activated sludge is disposed of properly along with the sludge collected
during primary treatment after digestion.
 PROPERTIES OF ASP:
 It contains fertilizing constituents.
 The colour of activated sludge indicates the degree of aeration.
 The colours of under-aerated, well-aerated and over-aerated sludges are light brown,
golden brown and muddy brown respectively.
 The moisture content of the activated sludge is about 95 to 97 %.
 PURPOSE OF ASP:
 In a sewage (or industrial wastewater) treatment plant, the activated sludge process
can be used for one or several of the following purposes:
 Oxidizing carbonaceous matter: biological matter.
 Oxidizing nitrogenous matter: mainly ammonium and nitrogen in biological materials.
 Removing phosphate.
 Driving off entrained gases carbon dioxide, ammonia, nitrogen, etc.
 Generating a biological floc that is easy to settle.
 Generating a liquor low in dissolved or suspended material.
 OPERATIONS OF ASP:
 Mixing of activated sludge
 Aeration
 Settling in the secondary clarifier.
 MIXING OF ACTIVATED SLUDGE:
• The activated sludge is mixed with raw or settled sewage properly.
 AERATION:
• The mixed liquor containing activated sludge and effluent is agitated or aerated in the
aeration tank or aeration chamber.
• The removal of grit and larger solids by screening, grit chambers and primary
sedimentation tank is necessary for aeration.

51
• The pre-removal of these settleable solids is helpful in preventing deposits on aeration
devices and thereby not reducing their efficiencies.
• Moreover, the grit and larger solids are not pre-removed they may settle down in
aeration tank and reduce the speed and efficiency of aeration process.
 SETTLING IN THE SECONDARY CLARIFIER:
• The mixed liquor after agitation is taken to the secondary clarifier.
• The sludge is allowed to settle down in this tank.
• The settled sludge is the activated sludge and a portion of the settled sludge is sent for
recirculation.
• The removing activated sludge is taken to the sludge digestion tank and then to the
sludge drying beds for further treatment.
 ADVANTAGES:
 The cost of installation is low.
 The effluent of good quality is obtained.
 The process requires small area of land and hence the design may be made compact.
 There is comparatively very small loss of head through the treatment plant.
 There is freedom from fly and odour nuisance due to high degree of treatment given
to the sewage in this process.
 DISADVANTAGES:
 The cost of operating the process is relatively high.
 The process is sensitive to certain types of industrial wastes.
 The process requires skilled supervision for its efficient working.
 FOOD TO MICRO-ORGANISM RATIO (F/M RATIO):
F/M RATIO = Daily BOD load given to aeration system ( in gram )
Total microbial mass in the aeration system ( in gram )
 SLUDGE VOLUME INDEX:
 The sludge volume index is defined as the volume occupied by one gram of activated
sludge after a settling period of 30 minutes.
 The term SVI is used to indicate the degree of concentration of sludge and it reflects
the physical state of sludge.
UPFLOW ANAEROBIC SLUDGE BLANKET :
 Upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) technology, normally referred to as UASB
reactor, is a form of anaerobic digester that is used for wastewater treatment.
52
 The UASB reactor is a methanogenic (methane-producing) digester that evolved from
the anaerobic clarigester.
 UASB uses an anaerobic process whilst forming a blanket of granular sludge which
suspends in the tank.
 Wastewater flows upwards through the blanket and is processed (degraded) by
the anaerobic microorganisms.
 Biogas with a high concentration of methane is produced as a by-product, and this
may be captured and used as an energy source, to generate electricity for export and to
cover its own running power.
OXIDATION POND:
 Oxidation pond is a type of wastewater treatment which also refers
as lagoons or water stabilization pond.
 It is a secondary treatment of wastewater coming from industries, residential areas etc.
 It makes the use of microorganisms like bacteria, algae and light energy (sunlight) to
stabilize the wastewater.
 Oxidation pond is constructed 1-1.5m deep inside the soil and have inlet and outlet
systems.
 Oxidation pond can define as the stabilization pond that stabilizes the domestic, trade,
industrial wastes etc. by the microbial interaction, primarily bacteria and algae.
 It is the large, shallow ponds having 2-6 feet height of water body.
 Oxidation pond requires the presence of sunlight and oxygen for the secondary
treatment of domestic and trade wastes.
 The secondary treatment of the organic and inorganic waste coming from raw sewage
and industrial effluents is necessary.
 The direct disposal of the wastewater to the aquatic system can affect the life of
water-bodies and the quality of water as well.

53
 Figure No.13
 ADVANTAGES:
 The stabilization pond can reduce the biological oxygen demand up to 90% naturally.
 It is a simple method to operate, does not require sophisticated equipment.
 Oxidation pond is a practical and effective method for the wastewater treatment of
domestic and trade wastes in the tropical areas.
 The operation of a stabilization pond does not require much labour-power.
 It is an economical method for the treatment of wastewater from small and isolated
units.
 DISADVANTAGES:
 The construction of a stabilization pond requires more land area.
 The maintenance is quite intricate.
 Sometimes, it gives a foul smell and mosquito menace during the process if not
appropriately maintained.
 There may get a chance of effluent seepage into the ground water, which can
ultimately cause ground water pollution.
TERTIARY OR FINAL TREATMENT OF WASTE WATER:
 Tertiary treatment of waste water is final treatment process in which all the chemical
and biological agents are completely removed from sewage before disposal into river.

54
 After the primary and secondary treatment of sewage, the sewage is a stabilized and a
harmless one.
 However, the primary and secondary treatments remove only conventional
constituents like TSS, BOD, COD, Organic carbon. Nitrogen, phosphorus etc.
 The non conventional compounds and other emerging compounds may still be present
in sewage.
 Also sewage contains some roundworms and bacterial pathogens that are difficult to
control.
 All these factors affect the public health and therefore, the sewage needs to undergo
tertiary treatment before disposal or reuse for industrial, agricultural and municipal
purposes.
 The tertiary treatment required will be always based on the type of water reuse and
degree of quality of the reclaimed water.
 OBJECTIVES OF TERTIARY TREATMENT PROCESS:
 Removal of suspended solids
 Removal of dissolved solids like salts
 Removal of nitrate and phosphate
 Killing of microorganisms
 REMOVAL OF SUSPENDED SOLIDS:
Suspended solids are removed by two methods:
 Microstraining:
• In this method, sewage is placed in rotating drum filter of pore size 25-35 µm and
then drum is rotated.
• During rotation, clear water comes out of drum and suspended solids remains inside
drum.
 Chemical coagulation and filtration:
• In this method, precipitating agents such as alum is added in sewage.
• Fine suspended solids adsorbs to the surface of Al(OC)3 precipitate, finally
precipitate with adsorbed solids are separated by filtration.
 REMOVAL OF DISSOLVED SOLIDS LIKE SALTS:
 Adsorption by activated carbon:
• Dissolved solids can be removed by filtering the water through filter containing
activated carbon particle.
 Reverse osmosis:
55
• Reverse osmosis removes dissolved solids like NaCl and microbial cells.
 REMOVAL OF NITRATE AND PHOSPHATE:
 If sewage after treatment is to be discharge into river, nitrate and phosphate should be
removed from sewage before disposal.
 It is because nitrate and phosphate causes eutrophication.
 These plant nutrients are removed by biological process.
 At first sewage is placed in a tank containing nitrifying bacteria.
 These bacteria converts ammonium salt and nitrite into nitrate.
 Then the sewage is placed into second tank containing denitrifying bacteria.
 These bacteria converts nitrate into Nitrogen gas that leaves the sewage.
 Phosphate is also removed by bacteria by microbial assimilation process.
 KILLING OF MICRO-ORGANISMS:
 Finally microorganisms in sewage are killed by disinfection like chlorination.
CHLORINATION OF SEWAGE:
 The process of killing the pathogenic bacteria present in the waste water is called
disinfection of sewage.
 Chlorination is the process of treating the sewage with chlorine in order to disinfect
the pathogens, either before or after the treatment.
 Chlorine is added to the sewage for the following purposes,
 To remove the odours.
 To break down the sulphur compounds.
 To kill the bacteria cells.
 To prevent the flies in trickling filters.
 To remove the grease.
 When chlorine is added to the treated sewage as a final step in the treatment is called
post-chlorination.
 The post chlorination is carried out for the sewage having low bacterial count and will
reduce the bacteria and BOD of the treated sewage.
 When chlorine is added to the raw or partially treated sewage in order to control the
bacterial growth is called pre-chlorination.
 Pre chlorination is used to control the odour of sewage before it enters to the
sedimentation tank, prevent the flies in trickling filter and helps to remove the grease
in skimming units.
56
 Chlorine may be added to the sewage at the beginning and end of the treatment
process is called split chlorination.

ADVANCES IN SEWAGE TREATMENT

 Advanced treatment of waste water is defined as the additional treatment needed to
remove the suspended, colloidal and dissolved constituents remaining after
conventional secondary treatment.
 NEED FOR ADVANCED WASTEWATER TREATMENT:
 To remove the organic matter and TSS beyond what can be removed by secondary
treatment.
 To remove nutrients, organic and inorganic constituents for re-use purposes.
TECHNOLOGIES USED FOR ADVANCED TREATMENT:
 Depth Filtration
 Adsorption
 Gas-stripping
 Ion-exchange
 Advanced oxidation process
 Distillation
 DEPTH FILTRATION:
 Depth filtration is an advanced wastewater treatment method, which involves the
removal of particulate material suspended in sewage and also used to remove
chemically precipitated phosphorous.
 The various techniques available in depth filtration are,
• Deep bed down flow filters
• Deep bed up flow continuous backflow filters.
• Pulsed bed filters
• Travelling bridge filters
• Synthetic medium filters
 ADSORPTION:
 Adsorption is defined as the process of accumulating substances that are in solution
on a suitable interface.
 Adsorption is a mass transfer operation, in that a constituent in the liquid phase is
transferred into solid phase.

57
 The adsorbate is the substance that is being removed from the liquid phase at the
interface.
 The adsorbent is the solid, liquid or gas phase onto which adsorbate accumulates.
 Activated carbon process is an example for the adsorption of advanced sewage
treatment method.
 GAS-STRIPPING:
 Gas stripping involves the mass transfer of a gas from the liquid phase to the gas
phase.
 The transfer is completed by contacting the liquid containing the gas that is to be
stripped with a gas that does not containing any gas initially.
 ION-EXCHANGE:
 Ion-exchange is a unit process in which ions of a given species are displaced from an
insoluble exchange material by ions of a different species in solution.
 The most widely used method of ion-exchange is domestic water softening method.
 Ion exchange method has been used in waste water application for the removal of
nitrogen, heavy metals and TSS.
 Ion exchange process can be operated in a batch or continuous mode.
 In a batch process, the resin is stirred with water to be treated in a reactor, until the
reaction is complete.
 The used resin is removed by settling and simultaneously regenerated and reused.
 In a continuous process, the exchange material is placed in a bed or a packed column
and the water to be treated is passed through it.
 ADVANCED OXIDATION PROCESS:
 Advanced oxidation processes are used to oxidize the complex organic constituents
found in wastewater, that are difficult to de-grade biologically into simpler end
products.
 When chemical oxidation is used, it may not be necessary to oxidize completely a
given compound or group of compounds.
 DISTILLATION:
 Distillation is a unit operation in which the components of a liquid solution are
separated by vaporization and condensation.
 Along with reverse osmosis, distillation can be used to control the formation of salts
in critical reuse applications.

58
 The method of distillation for wastewater reclamation is a recent development, the
current development must be consulted for the results of efficient operations and more
recent applications.

59
 SCHOOL OF BUILDING AND ENVIRONMENT
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

UNIT – V – DISPOSAL OF SEWAGE AND SLUDGE MANAGEMENT – SCI 1306

– SCIA1301

1
 SEWAGE DISPOSAL
 Sewage disposal is defined as the process of disposing the sewage, without affecting
the environment or the place of disposal.
 Scientific method of disposal of sewage will protect the health of the community and
the humans from bad smell.
 Mosquitoes, gases and other foul conditions.
 Disposal of sewage by proper method will also reduce the danger of spread of disease
like typhoid, dysentery, diarrhea etc.
 It also prevents the destruction of fish or other aquatic life by letting the untreated or
partially treated sewage discharge into the water bodies.
OBJECTIVES OF SEWAGE DISPOSAL
 To eliminate or reduce danger to the public health by possible contamination of water
supplies.
 To render the sewage inoffensive without causing odour or nuisance.
 To prevent the life of fish or other aquatic life by allowing raw sewage into bodies of
water as such.
 The destruction of fish & other Aquatic life can be prevented by the sewage disposal
methods.
 With proper sewage disposal the environment or the areas does not become polluted.
 Sanitary conditions are maintained in the area.
METHODS OF SEWAGE DISPOSAL

2
  In natural method of disposal, the sewage or wastewater is disposed into either
receiving water bodies and disposal of sewage into land for irrigation.
 In artificial method of sewage disposal, before discharging the effluent into natural
water bodies, the sewage is treated for primary or secondary treatment.
NATURAL METHOD OF DISPOSAL BY DILUTION

3
CONDITIONS FOR DILUTION:
 The city should be situated near the river, sea or lake.
 The sewage is comparatively fresh (4 to 5 hours old).
 The sewage should be free from all floating and settleable solids.
 The diluting water should not become a source of water supply.
 The area of point of disposal should not provide facilities for settling of solids and
formation of sludge deposits.
 Diluting water should have high oxygen content.
 Completing mixing of the sewage with diluting water should be possible.
 The diluting waters should not be used for navigational purposes.
 DILUTION FACTOR:
 The ratio of the quantity of the diluting water to that of the quantity of sewage is
called Dilution Factor.
 If the dilution factor is less than 8, the sewage has to be completely purified under the
following circumstances.
• The diluting water has more than 20 ppm of D.O in 5 days.
• The river is being used as a source of water supply on the downstream side.

4
• The effluent has to be used disposed of into tidal waters which may be in the form of
river or sea.

PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATIONS:
 When the method of disposal of dilution is to be adopted, a study of the effluent to be
discharged and nature of the receiving body of water should be made.
 Analysis of diluting water with special reference to the available D.O.
 Effect of sewage disposal on water used for aquatic life.
 Hydrographic survey to determine the intensity and direction of winds, currents and
tides.
 Minimum quantity of diluting water available at all time of the year.
 The degree of treatment given to sewage etc.
TYPES OF NATURAL WATERS:
 Creeks
 Estuaries
 Ground water
 Lakes
 Ocean or sea
 Perennial rivers and streams

5
 CREEKS:
 A creek is in the form of an inlet on sea coast and it may not have dry weather flow
during some period of the year.
 ESTUARIES:
 The wide lower tidal part of a river is known as estuary.
 The dilution of sewage in estuaries is affected by ocean water in addition to the river
water.
 Hence the process of dilution of sewage in estuaries is generally satisfactory.
 GROUND WATER:
 The sewage when applied on land ultimately filters out through different layers of
solids and it meets ground water at higher depths.
 If ground water flows through favourable strata of soil, the dilution of water is
satisfactory.
 LAKES:
 A lake is an enclosed water space and it may be used for the purpose of dilution of
sewage.
 In some areas, the larger lakes are used for both water supplies and disposal of
sewage.
 In such cases, the location of sewage disposal point should be carefully located, so as
not to affect the water supply intake.
 The various characteristics of lake like its size, shape, nature of the surrounding area,
volume of fresh water flowing in it etc. should be carefully decided before deciding
its self-purifying capacity.
 OCEAN OR SEA:
 The ocean or sea has water in abundance and hence its capacity to dilute sewage is
practically unlimited.
 The sewage of any quality can be diluted into sea.
 It is observed that the sewage reacts with sea water and forms precipitates giving
milky colour to the sea water and this is known as sludge banks.
 These sludge banks are undesirable as they produce hydrogen sulphide gas by
reacting with sulphate resulting in bad odour.
 The dissolved oxygen in sea water is 20 % less as compared to the stream water or
fresh water and also its re-aeration is slower.
 However, these deficiencies are removed by large volumes or sea water.
Following points should be noted while discharging sewage into the sea.
6
 There should be sufficient depth of water near the point of swage discharge into the
sea.
 The sea outfall for sewage should be carried sufficiently deep into the sea to a
distance of about 1.5 Km, so as not to cause any nuisance to the baths or recreation
centres on the sea shore.
 The sea outfall for sewage should be placed on firm rocky foundations.
 The sewage should be discharged below low water level at the time of lowest tides.
 PERENNIAL RIVERS AND STREAMS:
 The perennial rivers and streams flow throughout the year, with maximum and
minimum limits.
 The minimum limit generally occurs in summer.
 The dilution in summer becomes difficult due to the fact that in summer, the high
temperature of water results in low solubility of oxygen.
 The sewage under such circumstances should be properly treated before allowing
dilution with perennial rivers and streams.
SELF PURIFICATION OF NATURAL WATERS:
 When sewage is discharged into natural waters. Its organic matter gets oxidized by the
dissolved oxygen content in water, and the receiving water gets polluted due to the
waste products, present in the sewage effluents.
 But this is not happening always due to the natural forces of purification.
 The oxidation of organic matter converts the organic matter to simple harmless
substances. The deficiency of dissolved oxygen is filled by the absorption of
atmospheric oxygen.
 Thus, the oxygen of water is consumed by the sewage and at the same time, the
oxygen is taken from the atmosphere.
 This procedure occurs in all-natural waters is called Self-purification of natural
waters.
 The rate of self-purification will depend on various factors such as rate of re=aeration,
type of organic matter present in the sewage, temperature, velocity of flow, presence
of available oxygen in receiving waters, sedimentation etc.
 The self-purification of process of streams polluted by sewage can be grouped in the
following four zones or divisions.
 Degradation Zone
 Active-Decomposition Zone
 Recovery Zone

7
 Clear water Zone

8
 SOURCES OF GETTING OXYGEN:
 The oxygen required for the self-purification is obtained by natural waters from the
atmosphere in the following three ways.
 RAIN:
 The rain water is saturated with oxygen and when combines with natural water results
in increase of oxygen content.

9
 SURFACE LEVEL:
 The surface in natural water is in contact with the atmosphere.
 This surface absorbs oxygen from the atmosphere and passes it to the body of natural
waters.
 WAVES:
 Some portion of air absorbed by waves and eddies of natural waters.
 The diffusion and dispersion due to the movement of fish in water will also encourage
absorption of oxygen from the atmosphere.
FACTORS AFFECTING SELF PURIFICATION:
 DILUTION
 CURRENT
 TEMPERATURE
 SUNLIGHT
RATE OF OXIDATION
 DILUTION:
 When sufficient dilution water is available in the receiving water body, where the
waste water is discharged, the DO level in the receiving stream may not reach to zero
or critical DO due to availability of sufficient DO initially in the river water before
receiving discharge of wastewater.
 CURRENT:
 When strong water current is available, the discharged wastewater will be thoroughly
mixed with stream water preventing deposition of solids.
 In small current, the solid matter from the wastewater will get deposited at the bed
following decomposition and reduction in DO.
 TEMPERATURE:
 The quantity of DO available in stream water is more in cold temperature than in hot
temperature.
 Also, as the activity of microorganisms is more at the higher temperature, hence, the
self- purification will take less time at hot temperature than in winter.
 SUNLIGHT:
 Algae produces oxygen in presence of sunlight due to photosynthesis.
 Therefore, sunlight helps in purification of stream by adding oxygen through
photosynthesis.
 RATE OF OXIDATION:
10
 Due to oxidation of organic matter discharged in the river DO depletion occurs.
 This rate is faster at higher temperature and low at lower temperature.
 The rate of oxidation of organic matter depends on the chemical composition of
organic matter.

OXYGEN DEFICIENCY OF A POLLUTED RIVER

 DE-OXYGENATION CURVE:
 The curve which represents (or) showing the depletion of D.O with time at the given
temperature.
 RE-OXYGENATION CURVE:
 In order to counter balance, the consumption of D.O due to the de – oxygenation,
atmosphere supplies oxygen to the water and the process is called the re –
oxygenation.
 When wastewater is discharged in to the stream, the DO level in the stream goes on
depleting.
 This depletion of DO content is known as deoxygenation.
 The rate of deoxygenation depends upon the amount of organic matter remaining (Lt),
to be oxidized at any time t, as well as temperature (T) at which reaction occurs.

11
 The variation of depletion of DO content of the stream with time is depicted by the
deoxygenation curve in the absence of aeration.
 When the DO content of the stream is gradually consumed due to BOD load,
atmosphere supplies oxygen continuously to the water, through the process of re-
aeration or reoxygenation, i.e., along with deoxygenation, re-aeration is continuous
process.
 The rate of reoxygenation depends upon:
 Depth of water in the stream: more for shallow depth.
 Velocity of flow in the stream: less for stagnant water.
Oxygen deficit below saturation DO: since solubility rate depends on
difference between saturation concentration and existing concentration of DO.
Temperature of water: solubility is lower at higher temperature and also
saturation concentration is less at higher temperature.
 When sewage is discharged into the river, the oxygen demand by the organic matter
of sewage is satisfied.
 This is presented by the de-oxygenation curve.
 The ordinates below the de-oxygenation curve indicate the oxygen remaining in
natural waters, after satisfying the oxygen demand.
 When de-oxygenation takes place, the deficiency or deficit of oxygen is filled up by
the process of re-aeration. This is represented by the re-oxygenation curve.
 The rate of de-oxygenation becomes equal to the rate of re-oxygenation and the rate
of re-aeration depends on the deficiency of oxygen developed by the sewage.
 The rate of re-oxygenation increases and the natural waters become saturated with
D.O content as before.
 By using the above two curves, the quantity of net oxygen balance can be calculated
at any stage of the self-purification process.
 This is represented by Oxygen sag curve or Oxygen deficit curve.
 When the rate of de-oxygenation is equal to the rate of re-oxygenation, the critical
point of maximum deficit is reached.
 This point is shown on the oxygen sag curve and after this point is reached, the rate of
re-oxygenation rapidly increases.
 The oxygen sag curve indicates the net oxygen balance and the ordinates above the
curve represent the balance of oxygen contained in the natural waters.
 The saturated DO content of the natural water is about 9.1 mg/l at 20 C.

12
 But due to the presence of algae, organic matter or rise in temperature of water. The
initial DO concentration is about 8 mg/l instead of 9.1 mg/l. Thus, initial DO deficit is
(9.1 – 8) = 1.1 mg/l.
 The reoxygenation of natural water is a continuous process.
 It is Carried out by turbulence, diffusion, wind velocity, movement of fishes etc.
 The entire analysis of super – imposing rates of de-oxygenation and re-oxygenation
have been carried out mathematically and given in the form of Streeter Phelps
Equation.
 Oxygen Deficit, D = Saturation D.O – Actual D.O
 FACTORS EFFECTING NATURAL FORCES:
 TEMPERATURE
 TURBULENCE
 HYDROGRAPHY
 DISSOLVED OXYGEN
 RATE OF REAERATION
 TEMPERATURE:
 At higher temperature concentration of dissolved oxygen is low while the rate of
biological and chemical activities is high.
 This is likely to lead to anaerobic condition, the pollution is heavy.
 TURBULENCE:
 The turbulence in the body of water helps in breaking the surface of the stream or lake
and helps in rapid reaeration from the atmosphere.
 Too much of turbulence scours the bottom sediment and stops algae growth.
 HYDROGRAPHY:
 Hydrography affects the velocity and surface expanse of the river-stream.
 High velocity cause turbulence and rapid aeration, while surface expanse will also
have the same effect.
 DISSOLVED OXYGEN:
 The larger the amount of dissolved oxygen present in water the better and earlier is
the self-purification process.
 RATE OF REAERATION:
 The rate at which dissolved oxygen is restored will considerably govern the self-
purification process.

13
 The greater is this rate, the quicker will self-purification.

14
15
16
CONDITIONS FAVOURABLE FOR LAND TREATMENT
 The area of land treatment is composed of sandy, loamy or alluvial soils.
 Such soils are easily aerated and it is easy to maintain aerobic conditions in them.
 The depth of water table is more even in rainy season so that there are no chances of
pollution of underground water sources by land treatment.
 The rainfall in the area is low as it will assist in maintaining good absorption capacity
of soil.

17
 There is absence of river or other natural water sources in the vicinity of disposal of
sewage.
 There is demand for cash crops which can be easily grown on sewage farms.
 There is availability of large open areas in the surrounding locality for practicing
broad irrigation by sewage.
 ADVANTAGES OF LAND TREATMENT:
 Increased fertility of land results in profitable returns of crops.
 It is cheap where land is available in plenty.
 Application of sewage on land is the best method of supplying manure to the soil.
 Crops grown on land treated with sewage possess high calorific value and more
vitamins.
 The method becomes very much useful at places where disposal of sewage by dilution
is not possible.
 The method does not require costly equipment for its working.
 The method proves economical and safe where available irrigation water is scarce in
quantity.
 The method to some extent charges the underground aquifers.
 Water of irrigation canal is saved when this method is practised.
 Adds manure to land
 Pollution of natural water courses is minimized.
 Does not require any installation of equipment involving high initial cost.
 Crops could be grown and hence a return value is always possible to obtain.
 Method especially suitable where large quantity of river water is not available at all
times of the year.
 DISADVANTAGES OF LAND TREATMENT:
 If proper precautions are not taken, nuisance developed by sewage farming may lead
to possible dangers to the health of men.
 It is therefore, necessary that the sewage farms should be operated under skilled
technical supervision.
 Crops grown on sewage farms are generally not liked by ordinary public.
 The method is not applicable for all the seasons of year.
 In monsoon, some other arrangement of sewage disposal has to be found out.
 The method requires large area of land which may not be available in some cases.
18
 Types of crops grown on sewage treated land are limited in number.
 Difficult to get land during rainy and harvest seasons.
 Additional land is required for reserve.
 Sanitary reasons may not permit growing of crops on sewage farms.
 More land area is required is sewage volume is greater since land capacity is limited.
 If all precautions are not taken, sewage farming results in sewage sickness to land and
health to life.

19
BROAD IRRIGATION:
 In this method, sewage is allowed to flow over cultivated lands, from which a part of
the sewage evaporates, some percolates and the rest escape into surface drainage
channels.
 Sewage waters the land and adds to its fertilizing value, due to the presence of
nitrogen, phosphorus, potash etc.
 These fertilizing elements of sewage are consumed by the roots of crops.
 Crops like cotton, potatoes, sugarcane, grass etc, can be profitably grown. This is also
called sewage farming.
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SEWAGE FARMING:
The process in which sewage is used for growing crops is known as sewage farming.
 The fertilizing elements of sewage i. e nitrates, sulphates, & phosphates are used by
the roots of crops.
 The nutrients of sewage make the fields fertile.
 It is a profitable business & a good income can be generated by sewage farming.
SEWAGE SICKNESS:
 If sewage is applied continuously on a piece of land, pores or voids of soil are filled
up or clogged.
 Free circulation of air is thereby prevented and anaerobic conditions develop.
 At this stage, the land is unable to take any further sewage load.
 Organic matter decomposes and foul-smelling gases are produced.
 The phenomena of soil are known as sewage sickness of land.
PREVENTIVE MEASURES:
In order to prevent sewage sickness of land, the following preventive measures may
be adopted
ALTERNATIVE ARRANGEMENT:
 There should be ample provision of extra land so that land with sewage sickness can
be given the desired rest.
 Alternatively, sewage should be disposed of by some other method when sewage
farms are taking rest.
DEPTH OF SEWAGE:
 If sewage is applied in excess, the chances of sewage sickness are increased.
 The land is unable to receive the excess sewage in a satisfactory way and it ultimately
clogs up.
 Depth of sewage on land should be carefully decided by keeping in view the climatic
conditions, drainage facilities, nature of crops and characteristics of soil.
DRAINAGE OF SOIL:
 Subsoil drain pipes should be laid in sufficient number to collect the percolated
effluent.
INTERMITTENT APPLICATION:
 Sewage should be applied on land at intervals.

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  The period between successive applications depends on general working of sewage
farm and the permeability of soil.
 Depending on the nature of the soil, this period between successive applications
varies from few hours to few weeks.
PRETREATMENT OF SEWAGE:
 sewage should be given some pre-treatment before it is applied on land.
ROTATION OF CROPS:
 It is desirable to grow different types of crops on a piece of land instead of one single
crop.
 Rotation of crops minimizes the chances of sewage sickness.
TREATMENT TO LAND:
 The land affected by sewage sickness should be properly treated before it is put up in
use again.
 Clogged surfaces should be broken by suitable equipment.
PREVENTION OF SEWAGE SICKNESS:
Primary treatment like screening & sedimentation should be given to sewage before its
application to land so that suspended solids are removed & the pores of soil will not be
clogged.
The sewage should be applied intermittently on land i.e by giving rest to the land for some
time.
The land should be ploughed during non-supply period of sewage so that soil gets aerated.
Keeping some portion of land reserved in order to use the same in resting period.
Enough area will be required for this purpose.
By planting different crops on the same land by rotation system of crops.
The soil will be aerated & will utilize the fertilizing elements of sewage.
By providing sufficient under drainage system to collect the excessive sewage quantity.
By frequent ploughing & rotation of soil.
By not applying the sewage in excess quantity.

SOIL DISPERSION SYSTEM

A mound system for wastewater treatment is a soil absorption system placed above the
natural surface of the ground.
In pressure-dosed mounds, primary treated effluent is dispersed into carefully chosen fill of
permeable, well-drained sands which contain a high volume of free air within the pore space.

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A proprietary dispersal system is available that treats effluent from a septic tank, releasing
much cleaner water into the soil than standard dispersal systems.

CHARACTERISTICS OF SLUDGE
The sludge has an objectionable odour and it may pollute the environment.
It is bulky and contains large amount of water.
Its specific gravity may be taken as very nearly equal to that of water.
In 100 parts of sludge, about 98 % of water and remaining 2 % only the solid matter present
in the sludge.
In the moisture content of the sludge is reduced to about 70 % to 80 %, the sludge become
viscous.
If the moisture content is reduced to 10 %, the sludge becomes dry and assumes powder
form.
The water is so firmly held in the sludge and it requires special treatment for water removal
from the sludge.

SLUDGE TREATMENT
 Before disposing the sludge, it should undergo various unit processes are:
 Sludge Thickening
 Sludge Digestion
 Elutriation
 Sludge Dewatering
OBJECTIVES OF SLUDGE TREATMENT:
 The sludge from primary sedimentation tank and sludge from secondary
sedimentation units contains 96 % to 99 % of moisture content in its volume.
 Before disposing the sludge, the moisture should be removed in order to reduce the
volume of sludge disposal.
 To reduce the cost of transport for heavy volume of disposal.
 To minimize the land requirement.
 To save the additional fuel required for incineration method of sewage disposal.

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 SLUDGE DIGESTION
Sludge digestion is a biological process in which organic solids are decomposed into stable
substances.
Digestion reduces the total mass of solids, destroys pathogens, and makes it easier to dewater
or dry the sludge.
Digested sludge is inoffensive, having the appearance and characteristics of a rich
potting soil.
Sludge, the by-product of biological wastewater treatment is also considered as biomass.
Energy recovery from sludge is possible through sludge incineration (biomass-to-energy) or
by means of sludge digestion (biomass-to-biogas).
The methane generation is a key advantage of the anaerobic process.

The methane can be used to generate heat and electric power in cogeneration units while
reducing the carbon footprint and greenhouse emissions of the wastewater treatment plant.

After sludge digestion, the digestate can be stabilized for landfill or used as fertilizer,
depending on its composition and local legislation.

An alternative is to further mechanically dewater the sludge prior to thermal drying and
incineration.
Most large sewage treatment plants use a two-stage digestion system in which organics are
metabolized by bacteria anaerobically (in the absence of oxygen).

In the first stage, the sludge, thickened to a dry solids (DS) content of about 5 percent, is
heated and mixed in a closed tank for several days.

Acid-forming bacteria hydrolyze large molecules such as proteins and lipids, breaking them
into smaller water-soluble molecules, and then ferment those smaller molecules into various
fatty acids.

The sludge then flows into a second tank, where the dissolved matter is converted by other
bacteria into biogas, a mixture of carbon dioxide and methane.

Methane is combustible and is used as a fuel to heat the first digestion tank as well as to
generate electricity for the plant.

Anaerobic digestion is very sensitive to temperature, acidity, and other factors.

It requires careful monitoring and control.

In some cases, the sludge is inoculated with extra hydrolytic enzymes at the beginning of the
first digestion stage in order to supplement the action of the bacteria.

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It has been found that this enzymatic treatment can destroy more unwanted pathogens in the
sludge and also can result in the generation of more biogas in the second stage of digestion.

Another enhancement of the traditional two-stage anaerobic digestion process is thermal

hydrolysis, or the breaking down of the large molecules by heat.

This is done in a separate step before digestion.

In a typical case, the process begins with a sludge that has been dewatered to a DS content of
some 15 percent.

The sludge is mixed with steam in a pulper, and this hot homogenized mixture is fed to a
reactor, where it is held under pressure at approximately 165 °C (about 330 °F) for about 30
minutes.

At that point, with the hydrolytic reactions complete, some of the steam is bled off (to be fed
to the pulper), and the sludge, still under some pressure, is released suddenly into a “flash
tank,” where the sudded drop in pressure bursts the cell walls of much of the solid matter.

The hydrolyzed sludge is cooled, diluted slightly with water, and then sent directly to the
second stage of anaerobic digestion.

Sludge digestion may also take place aerobically—that is, in the presence of oxygen.

The sludge is vigorously aerated in an open tank for about 20 days.

Methane gas is not formed in this process.

Although aerobic systems are easier to operate than anaerobic systems, they usually cost
more to operate because of the power needed for aeration.

Aerobic digestion is often combined with small extended aeration or contact stabilization
systems.

Aerobic and conventional anaerobic digestion convert about half of the organic sludge solids
to liquids and gases.

Thermal hydrolysis followed by anaerobic digestion can convert some 60 to 70 percent of the
solid matter to liquids and gases.

Not only is the volume of solids produced smaller than in conventional digestion, but the
greater production of biogas can make some wastewater treatment plants self-sufficient
in energy.

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ADVANTAGES:
 Reduction of sludge volume.
 Production of biogas available for heat and electric power generation.
 Reduction of greenhouse gases.

SLUDGE DIGESTER

Figure No.1

The digesters are closed circular tanks 30 m in diameter and up to 12 m deep.

The digestion uses the naturally-occurring anaerobic (i.e. living without oxygen)
microorganisms to break down organic materials into methane and carbon dioxide.
The sludge is heated to 37 degrees C in the primary digester to improve the rate of digestion.
The sludge then enters the secondary digester.
Anaerobic digestion is a biological process which breaks down a significant number of
organic solids in the sludge and at the same time produces methane gas that is used as a boiler
fuel for plant heating.
Consequently, the volume of final sludge is significantly reduced. So is the cost for sludge
disposal.
The mixture of sludge and liquid in the secondary digester is hauled by truck to Edmonton’s
Clover Bar Sludge Lagoons for disposal.
The digesters are equipped with gas compressors and sludge recirculation pumps to provide
adequate mixing capability for better digestion of sludge and production of methane gas.

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 SLUDGE CONDITIONING

Sludge conditioning is a process whereby sludge solids are treated with chemicals or various
other means to prepare the sludge for dewatering processes, in other words, to improve
dewatering characteristics of the sludge.

MECHANISMS TO CONDITION THE SLUDGE:

There are two mechanisms involved in sludge conditioning:
1. Neutralization of charge (double layer theory)
2. Bridging of individual particles into a floc structure (polymer bridge formation)

SLUDGE DEWATERING
Digested sewage sludge is usually dewatered before disposal.

Dewatered sludge still contains a significant amount of water—often as much as 70

percent—but, even with that moisture content, sludge no longer behaves as a liquid and can
be handled as a solid material.

Sludge-drying beds provide the simplest method of dewatering.

A digested sludge slurry is spread on an open bed of sand and allowed to remain until dry.

Drying takes place by a combination of evaporation and gravity drainage through the sand.

A piping network built under the sand collects the water, which is pumped back to the head
of the plant.

After about six weeks of drying, the sludge cake, as it is called, may have a solids content of
about 40 percent.

It can then be removed from the sand with a pitchfork or a front-end loader.

In order to reduce drying time in wet or cold weather, a glass enclosure may be built over the
sand beds.

Since a good deal of land area is needed for drying beds, this method of dewatering is
commonly used in rural or suburban towns rather than in densely populated cities.

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 SLUDGE DISPOSAL
The final destination of treated sewage sludge usually is the land.
Dewatered sludge can be buried underground in a sanitary landfill.
It also may be spread on agricultural land in order to make use of its value as a soil
conditioner and fertilizer.
The suspended solids that accumulate at the bottom of the clarifiers or settling tank is called
sludge.
There are different types of sludge based on the sources are:
Chemically precipitated sludge
Trickling filter sludge
Digested sludge
Sludge from settling tank
Sludge from activated sludge process.
The sewage after treatment is separated into two different parts:
Effluent
Sludge
The effluent is clear sparkling liquid and sludge is a combination of suspended solids with
different proportions of water.
The disposal of effluent is not a problem whereas the disposal of sludge should be carefully
done in order to avoid the pollutions.
The effluent can be used for various purposes such as street washing, fish culture, growing
crops, industrial supply, watering for public park etc.

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