Abstract
Abstract
The aim of this study was to calibrate and validate activated sludge model No. 3 (ASM3) for an Italian municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) located in Friuli Venezia Giulia region. The model was modified and calibrated using experimental data from aerobic and anoxic respirometric batch tests with activated sludge from the biological treatment line of the studied WWTP. Calibrated set of model's kinetic parameters and stoichiometric coefficients, obtained from these tests, were able to describe the oxygen uptake rate as well as the ammonia and nitrate uptake rate of the activated sludge. The model was validated using full-scale operating data from the biological unit of the WWTP. Validated ASM3 allowed successful simulation and prediction of chemical oxygen demand decay, nitrification and denitrification processes, oxygen consumption, and sludge production. Finally, sensitivity analysis with respect to model outputs was performed and accuracy of the model determined by evaluating the theoretical predictions using the root mean squared error (0.2–72%) and the Nash and Sutcliff efficiency index values (0.806–0.999). The validated ASM3 could be used as a decision tool, predicting the real operating conditions under which best efficiency of the WWTP with low sludge production may be expected.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
