The new direction of sewage treatment in the future? See how Dutch sewage plants are transformed

For this reason, countries around the world have tried a variety of technical routes, eager to achieve energy conservation and emission reduction, and restore the earth’s environment.

Under pressure from layer to layer, sewage plants, as large energy consumers, are naturally facing transformation:

For example, strengthen the function of pollutant reduction and engage in extreme nitrogen and phosphorus removal;

For example, to improve the energy self-sufficiency rate to carry out standard upgrading and transformation to achieve low-carbon sewage treatment;

For example, attention should be paid to resource recovery in the process of sewage treatment to achieve recycling.

So there is:

In 2003, the world’s first NeWater reclaimed water plant was built in Singapore, and the reuse of sewage reached drinking water standards;

In 2005, the Austrian Strass sewage treatment plant achieved energy self-sufficiency for the first time in the world, relying only on the recovery of chemical energy in sewage to meet the energy consumption of sewage treatment;

In 2016, Swiss legislation mandated the recovery of non-renewable phosphorus resources from sewage (sludge), animal manure and other pollutants.

As a world-recognized water conservancy power, the Netherlands is naturally not far behind.

So today, the editor will talk to you about how the sewage plants in the Netherlands are upgraded and transformed in the era of carbon neutrality.

The concept of wastewater in the Netherlands – the framework of NEWs

The Netherlands, located in the delta of the Rhine, Maas and Scheldt, is a low-lying land.

As an environmentalist, every time I mention Holland, the first thing that pops up in my mind is Delft University of Technology.

In particular, its Kluvyer Biotechnology Laboratory is world-renowned for its achievements in microbial engineering technology. Many of the sewage biological treatment technologies we are familiar with now come from here.

Such as denitrification phosphorus removal and phosphorus recovery (BCFS), short-range nitrification (SHARON), anaerobic ammonium oxidation (ANAMMOX/CANON), aerobic granular sludge (NEREDA), side stream enrichment/mainstream enhanced nitrification (BABE), biological Plastic (PHA) recycling, etc.

What’s more, these technologies are also developed by Professor Mark van Loosdrecht, for which he won the “Nobel Prize” in the water industry – Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize.

Long ago, Delft University of Technology proposed the concept of sustainable sewage treatment. In 2008, the Netherlands Applied Water Research Foundation embodied this concept into the “NEWs” framework.

That is, the abbreviation of the phrase Nutrient (nutrient) + Energy (energy) + Water (water) factories (factory), which means that the sewage treatment plant under the sustainable concept is actually a trinity production factory of nutrients, energy and recycled water.

It just so happens that the word “NEWs” also has a new meaning, which is both new life and the future.

How good is this “NEWs”, under its framework, there is almost no waste in the traditional sense in the sewage:

Organic matter is the carrier of energy, which can be used to make up for the energy consumption of the operation and achieve the purpose of carbon-neutral operation; the heat contained in the sewage itself can also be converted into a large amount of heat/cold energy through the water source heat pump, which can not only contribute to the carbon-neutral operation, but also Capable of exporting heat/cold to society. This is what the power plant is about.

Nutrients in sewage, especially phosphorus, can be effectively recovered during the treatment process, so as to delay the lack of phosphorus resources to the greatest extent. This is the content of the nutrient factory.

After the recovery of organic matter and nutrients is completed, the main goal of traditional sewage treatment is completed, and the remaining resources are the reclaimed water we are familiar with. This is what a reclaimed water plant is about.

Therefore, the Netherlands also summarized the process steps of sewage treatment into six major processes: ①pretreatment; ②basic treatment; ③post-treatment; ④sludge treatment;

It looks simple, but in fact there are many technologies to choose from behind each process step, and the same technology can also be applied in different process steps, just like permutations and combinations, you can always find the most suitable way to treat sewage.

If you need the above products to treat various sewage, please contact us.

cr: Naiyanjun Environmental Protection Hydrosphere


Post time: May-25-2023