SECONDARY TREATMENT OF SEWAGE

The effluent that is coming out from primary clarifiers contains about 45 to 50 per
cent of the unstable organic matter originally present in the sewage. Larger solids have
been removed by settlement in the sedimentation tanks and organic matter present in
sewage in solution or in suspension or as colloidal matter is carried away by effluent
from the settling tanks. The sewage to this extent is prepared to receive the secondary
treatment.
The main function of the secondary treatment of sewage is to convert the
remaining organic matter into stable form by oxidation or nitrification. The secondary
treatment of sewage involves various methods. But these methods may broadly be
classified into the following two categories:
• Filtration
• Activated sludge process
Filters
The filters which are commonly employed in secondary treatment of sewage are of the
following four types:
1. Contact beds
2. Intermittent sand filters
3. Trickling filters
4. Miscellaneous filters
In this chapter we will discuss only about the trickling filters and activated sludge
process.

Trickling filters
Theory
These are also known as percolating filters or sprinkling filters. Sewage is allowed to
sprinkle or to trickle over a bed of coarse, rough, hard material and it is then collected
through the underdrainage system. Oxidation of the organic matter is carried out under
aerobic conditions. A bacterial film is formed around the particles of filtering media and
for the existence of this film, oxygen is supplied by the intermittent working of the filter
and by the provision of suitable ventilation facilities in the body of the filter. The colour
of this film is blackish, greenish and yellowish. It consists of bacteria, fungi, algae,
lichens, protozoa, etc.
The concept of a trickling filter was made mainly to design a device which would
overcome the limitations of a contact bed and the first trickling filter was put into
operation in 1893 in England. The first municipal installation of trickling filter in the
United States took place in 1908 and since then, they have been widely used to provide
biological sewage treatment.
Structural features:
Shape
Trickling filters may be circular or rectangular in shape, the former being very common.
The following figure shows a trickling filter with rotary distributor.

Rotary distributor

Effluent
from
primary
treatment Settling
tank

air air
Sludge Effluent
for
drainage

Filter media:
Filter media of a trickling filter may consist of crushed rock or clinker or specially
manufactured material. The particles of filter media should be approximately cubical in
shape and the filtering media should be free from flat or elongated pieces and should not
contain dirt or any other undesirable materials. It is essential to provide filtering media of
uniform size. The size of particles will depend upon the type of trickling filter. But it
generally varies from 30 mm to 80 mm.
Floors:
Floor of a trickling filter is generally made of RCC and its thickness is about 10 cm to
15cm. The slope of the floor may be towards the central drain or towards the periphery
of filter as per design of under drainage system.
Under drainage system:
Trickling filters should be provided with suitable under drainage system to collect the
sewage after it has passed through the filtering media. The treated sewage should be
promptly collected at the bottom of filter and sent for further treatment or disposal.
Under drains consist of specially manufactured blocks or half-round tiles. These drains
support the filter media and lead the effluent to main channel. They also provide
ventilation to filter media. Under drains and effluent channels should be designed to run
one-half full and the velocity of flow in them should not exceed 60 cm to 90 cm per
second.
Distributors:
The function of distributor is to spread the influent evenly on the filtering media.
Distributors may be divided into two categories, viz., movable and fixed.
Movable distributors
These may be further classified as rotary and rectilinear distributors
Rotary distributors are provided with distributing arms, usually four in number. These
arms rotate around a central support. These distributors are suitable for circular trickling
filters and are found to be very popular.
Rectilinear distributors move back and forth from one end to the other end. They are
supported on rails and are suitable for rectangular trickling filters.
Fixed distributors
These are in the form of spray nozzles which are fixed on the surface of fitler at
appropriate distances. These nozzles discharge the sewage into atmosphere and sewage
then falls on these surface of filter in the form of very fine drops. Fixed distributors are
suitable for small installations.
Dosing tank
Sewage is generally not applied on the surface of filter continuously. Sewage is applied
for 3 to 5 minutes and then application of sewage is stopped or discontinued for a period
of about 3 to 10 minutes or more. Number of dosing tanks may be decided as per
requirement.
Treatment of sewage
When trickling filters are adopted, treatment of sewage is carried out in three stages:
• Primay sedimentation
• Filtration and
• Post-filtration treatment
The filtration is no doubt the main stage of the treatment process. But to achieve better
results from the trickling filter plant, it is desirable and essential to provide the other two
stages (1) and (2) also.
Primary sedimentation removes large suspended particles and hence the clogging of filter
media is avoided. It also further facilitates the oxidation of finely divided matter of
sewage in the fitler.
Trickling filters remove the total solids of sewage to some extent only. It should be
remembered that the main functions of the trickling filter is to change the character or
nature of the suspended solids rather than to remove them totally from sewage. It,
therefore, becomes essential to give some post-filtration treatment to effluent of the
trickling filter.
Design aspects
1. Depth: The effective depth of trickling filters is generally kept between 180 cm
to 240 cm. The depths greater than 240cm do not give any additional advantage
in actual practice. The depths smaller than 180 cm are adopted only under special
circumstances such as to avoid pumping, etc.
2. Number: The design should make a provision for a stand-by unit and hence,
minimum two trickling filters should be provided so that one can be taken out of
use for repairs, etc.
3. Rate of filter loading: Following units are most commonly used to express the
rate of loading of a trickling fitler.
i. Kg of BOD per volume of filter bed: The rate of filter loading according
to this unit varies from 1000 to 2200 kg of BOD per hectare-metre per day
 ii. Kg of BOD per volume of filter media: The rate of filter loading
according to this unit varies from 15 to 30 kg of BOD per day per 100 m3
of filter material
iii. Surface area of filter bed: The rate of filter loading according to this unit
varies from 25 to 40 million litres per hectare of surface area per day
iv. Volume of filter bed: The unit adopted is hectare-metre. The rate of filter
loading according to this unit varies from 7.50 to 22.50 million litres per
hectare-metre per day.
Advantages
i. Effluent obtained from trickling filters is highly nitrified and stabilized. It,
therefore, requires smaller volume of water for dilution
ii. Mechanical wear and tear is small as it contains less mechanical equipment
iii. Moisture content of sludge obtained from trickling filters is as high as 99 per cent
or so.
iv. Operation of trickling filters requires less electrical power to run the mechanical
equipment.
v. Trickling filters are flexible in operation and they can, therefore, withstand the
application of variety of sewage having different concentration and composition
vi. Trickling filters may reduce the BOD and colloidal matter to the extent of about
75 per cent and 80 per cent respectively
vii. Working of trickling filters is simple and it does not require skilled supervision

Disadvantages
i. Cost of construction of trickling filters is high
ii. Loss of head through the filter is high
iii. The process may develop fly nuisance and bad odour. The former may be
controlled by the use of any suitable insecticide
iv. The process requires primary treatment of sewage and hence, raw sewage cannot
be purified by this process.
v. Trickling filters require large land area.
ACTIVATED SLUDGE PROCESS
This process was developed in England in 1914 by Ardern and Lockett and it was so
named as it involved the production of an activated mass of micro-organisms capable of
aerobically stabilizing a waste. Various modifications of the original process have been
made. But in principle, they are fundamentally the same.
The term activated sludge is used to indicate the sludge which is obtained by settling
sewage in presence of abundant oxygen. The activated sludge is biologically active and
it contains a great number of aerobic bacteria and other micro-organisms which have got
an unusual property to oxidize the organic matter.
Following are the properties of activated sludge:
• Activated sludge contains fertilizing constituents
• Colour of activated sludge indicates the degree of aeration. Colours of under-
aerated sludge, well-aerated sludge and over-aerated sludge are respectively light
brown, golden brown and muddy brown.
• Moisture content of activated sludge is found to be relatively high. It contains
about 95 to 97 per cent of water.
Action of activated sludge
Activated sludge is mixed with raw or partially treated sewage. Sewage is given the
usual primary treatments in activated sludge process. When activated sludge is mixed
properly with sewage containing ample or sufficient quantity of oxygen, micro-organisms
present in activated sludge multiply rapidly. As a result of this phenomena, the following
effects takes place:
• Organic solids present in sewage are rapidly oxidized; and
• Suspended and colloidal matters coagulate and they form a readily settleable
precipitate.
• After such precipitate settles down, the effluent which is obtained is clear and
sparkling. The effluent contains very low amount of organic matter and it is
generally not given any further treatment except chlorination in some cases. A
portion of settled sludge is sent for recirculation and the remaining part is sent to
sludge digestion tanks. The digested sludge is harmless and it does not produce
any nuisance.
The following flow chart shows the flow diagram of activated sludge process.

Effluent
for
Effluent drainage
Aeration Sedimentation
tank tank

Air supply Sludge

Recycled Surplus
Sludge

The following three basic operations are involved in activated sludge process:
1. Mixing of activated sludge: The activated sludge is mixed properly with raw or
settled sludge. The activated sludge is added to the effluent of primary classifier
2. Aeration: The mixed liquor containing activated sludge and effluent is agitated or
aerated in the aeration tank. This is the chief operation of activated sludge
process and various methods are found to achieve it successfully.
3. Settling in secondary clarifier: The mixed liquor after agitation is taken to the
secondary clarifier. Sludge is allowed to settle in this tank. Settled sludge is the
activated sludge and a portion of it is sent for recirculation. The extra activated
sludge is taken to sludge digestion tank and then to sludge drying beds for further
treatment.
Sludge bulking
An excellent activated sludge, when overloaded, become sick and it results in the
swelling of the sludge in volume. This phenomena is known as sludge bulking and
during this phenomena, the sludge assumes unusual great volume. Occurrence of sludge
bulking indicates presence of unsatisfactory conditions in the activated sludge process.
Following factors assist the development of sludge bulking
1. Accumulation of sludge at the bottom of aeration tanks
2. Aeration below the required degree
3. Presence of harmful industrial wastes
4. Sudden change in the character of sewage
5. Unusual detention of sludge in clarifier

When sludge bulking occurs, the sludge does not readily settle down. But it remains in
suspension in secondary clarifiers and it is even seen in the effluent of the secondary
clarifiers. The quality of effluent is thus seriously affected and hence, extreme care
should be taken to control the development of sludge bulking. Following are such
remedial measures:
• Chlorination of sewage
• Prolonged aeration
• Raising of pH value of sewage to about 8 or so by adding lime
• Reaeration of returned activated sludge
• Reduction in sewage flow to aeration tank for a short period
• Reduction of suspended solids in the sewage
Sludge volume index:
The term sludge volume index or SVI is used to indicate the degree of concentration of
sludge and it reflects the physical state of sludge. The sludge volume index is determined
as follows:
Sludge volume index = (% of sludge by volume)/ (% of suspended solids by weight)
The sludge volume index is thus defined as the volume in milliliters occupied by one
gram of activated sludge after a settling period of 30 minutes.
Advantages of activated sludge process
• Cost of installation is low
• Effluent of good quality is obtained
• 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 of activated sludge process
If there is sudden increase in the volume of sewage or if there is sudden change in
the character of sewage, there are adverse effects on the working of the process
and consequently, the effluent of bad quality is obtained
Cost of operating the process is relatively high
Increased quantity of wet sludge obtained at the end of process requires suitable
method for its disposal
Process is sensitive to certain types of industrial wastes
Process requires skilled supervision for its efficient working. It becomes
necessary to ascertain that the sludge actually remains active during the process.