Grant: Collaborative Research and Development Grants

This research presents collaboration between academia (Scott Smith, Laurier), and industry (EnviroSim Associates Ltd.) to assess the different fractions of total phosphorous in wastewater over a wide survey of treatment plant technologies. EnviroSim is a small to medium enterprise in Southern Ontario that creates and markets wastewater simulation software (BioWin) as well as providing related consulting and training services. Traditional techniques based on Standard Methods, as well as novel analytical techniques will be tested. The fate and transformations of phosphorus within treatment plants and between plants utilizing different treatment methods will allow for more detailed chemical and biological phosphorus mathematical/computer models to be developed. Experts at EnviroSim will facilitate the modelling and EnviroSim will be able to include improved phosphorus models in their wastewater modelling software (BioWin) with ancillary benefits of increased software sales and consulting opportunities. Total Phosphorus can be fractionated based on analytical methods into different forms. Current phosphorus removal technologies are targeted at eliminating one form only (ortho-P) using chemical and/or biological methods. As more advanced treatment processes are applied to eliminate nearly all the ortho-P, in order to meet the extremely low total phosphorus regulatory limits, other factions of P become relevant and important. The fractional composition of phosphorus and its variations among different effluents from different treatment processes have hardly been investigated and there are no predictive models for their fate in wastewater treatment. Current treatment process models were developed when typical effluent phosphorus levels were in a range much higher than today. The models, due to lack of computing power and accurate data, combined all the phosphorus fractions into one variable and considered the behaviour as ortho-P. This approach is not valid when 80-90% of a low residual phosphorus may be associated with other phases. There is a need for improved models and this research with academic and industrial partners will address that need.