PROTEUS · new PROcess models to simulaTE, benchmark and control Urban wastewater treatment Systems""

new PROcess models to simulaTE, benchmark and control Urban wastewater treatment Systems

The objective of this project was to develop a new set of mathematical models describing some of the new focus areas/challenges that wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) are facing nowadays. These new focus areas/challenges include nutrient recycling & recovery, micropollutant removal, energy recovery, minimization of greenhouse gas formation. The most innovative part of the project relied on finding new ways to operate these facilities satisfying the new requirements by means of developing, implementing and simulating novel (plant-wide) control strategies / operational procedures. In order to avoid unbiased comparisons a new benchmarking procedure was proposed. This procedure comprised a pre-defined plant layout, simulation models, influent loads, test procedures and evaluation criteria. Finally, the study was complemented with a multi-criteria decision module that will rank the different technological solutions taking into account multiple aspects at the same time. The project was hosted by the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) but with numerous collaborations with other research centres (Lund University, Sweden; Queensland University, Australia; The University of Cape Town, South Africa) and specialized Task Groups of the International Water Association (IWA) (physicho-chemical framework, greenhouse gas emissions, life cycle assessment). The results of this collaboration were several combined journal publications and conference presentations. One of the main outcomes of the project is a software package that will be used as a decision support tool, which will be (freely) distributed to water professionals, process managers and environmental engineers. The project was sub-divided in five different work-packages (WP) that provided answers to the previously posted objectives: WP1 (modelling), WP2 (control), WP3 (benchmarking), WP4 (multi-criteria analysis) and WP5 (dissemination). The interactions amongst the different challenges, the WPs and the project deliverables are schematically depicted in Figure 1 (see attached document). The results of the research work carried out in WP1 and WP2 was transferred into WP3. Tools developed in WP4 need to integrate the outcomes obtained from WP1, 2 and 3. Finally, dissemination of the results was achieved in WP5. At the end of the project several of the promised deliverables are indeed available publicly: 1) conference proceedings; 2) journal publications; and 3) a software prototype that will be freely distributed. (see Figure 2)

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