Available at: https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/2870
Date of Award
6-2024
Degree Name
MS in Civil and Environmental Engineering
Department/Program
Civil and Environmental Engineering
College
College of Engineering
Advisor
Tryg Lundquist
Advisor Department
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Advisor College
College of Engineering
Abstract
Study of wastewater treatment ponds at full-scale compared the areal total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) removal rates and specific TAN removal rates of high-rate algal ponds (HRPs) to the TAN removal rates of facultative ponds. The outer high-rate algal pond (HRPO) demonstrated superior specific and areal TAN removal rates compared to the inner HRP and the two facultative ponds. Solids return into the HRPO for a portion of the study period yielded increased volatile suspended solids content but no noticeable increase in TAN removal rate. Nitrification modeling for the HRPO tested multilinear regression, multilinear regression on every second observation of the data set, and a nonlinear Michaelis-Menten regression. The multilinear regression on the full data set explained the most variance with an R2 = 55.9% and the following significant (p-value < 0.05) variables: solar insolation, temperature, and ambient TAN concentration.
Wastewater treatment pond systems are used worldwide as a method for affordable solids and nutrient removal, but these systems can be less predictable due to their reliance on biological processes. This thesis project recorded various water quality parameters and nitrogen species concentrations on a weekly basis from July 2020 to April 2022 to compare pond performance and identify process improvements. Accurately modeling a pond’s performance will better allow operators to save on aeration and coagulation costs while still meeting effluent goals.