Demonstration of enhanced nutrient removal at two full-scale SBR plants.

The efficacy of sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) to provide high levels of biological nutrient removal has been extensively demonstrated around the world. Environmental Solutions International (ESI) has now constructed over 20 full-scale SBR plants and has confirmed that nutrient removal is enhanced via the process of simultaneous nitrification and denitrification. Over 18 months of operational data from two plants, operating in distinctly different catchments, processing an average of between 2,000 and 2,500 m3/d of wastewater, has clearly shown the efficacy and robustness of the ESI SBR-BNR process. Median effluent total nitrogen and total phosphorus values of 3 mg/L and <0.6 mg/L, respectively, were demonstrated over the 18-month period. This high level of nutrient removal is attributed to the design of the bio-selector which maximises carbon storage for the subsequent denitrification reactions, the effective aeration control which ensures no over-aeration during the air-on cycle as well as the level of operational control provided at these two plants.