1. Fast and furious: Optimization and validation of high-rate contact stabilization (HiCS) for recovery of organics from sewage
Francis A. Meerburg, Arifur Rahman, Tim Van Winckel, Koen Pauwels, Haydée De Clippeleir, Ahmed Al-Omari, Sudhir Murthy, Nico Boon, Siegfried E. Vlaeminck

2. Aquafin 2.9 PJ per jaar = 0.8056 TWh/jaar
= gezinnen (aan 3500 kWh/j per gezin van 3 personen)
= personen = heel stad antwerpen (meerdere districten)
= € 96.7 miljoen/j (aan 0.12 €/kWh)

3. Maximizing energy recovery
Organic carbon redirection
Partial nitritation/ anammox
High-rate activated sludge
Ultrafiltration/ Reverse Osmosis
Potable
water
grit removal
UV disinfection
Idea of ZeroWasteWater: First stage for carbon redirection and energy recovery, second stage for nutrient polishing (and recovery), third stage for drinking water production
biogas
Nutrients /
dewatered sludge
Energy recovery
Electricity
(& heat)
Anaerobic digestion
Dewatering / nutrient recovery
(Verstraete & Vlaeminck, 2011, Int J Sust Dev World, ‘ZeroWasteWater’)

4. High-rate contact stabilization2

5. High-rate contact stabilization2
CO2
CO2
CO2
CH4
CH4
CH4

6. HiCS optimization 8 SBR reactors (3 L) Synthetic sewage (800 mg COD/L)
This study: find an optimum of SRT, HRTcont and HRTstab
Materials and methods: 8 lab-scale SBR reactors fed with high-strength wastewater (synthetic, but with complex composition)
8 SBR reactors (3 L)
Synthetic sewage (800 mg COD/L)
15°C lab

7. Carbon redirection Up to 59% to sludge
This study: find an optimum of SRT, HRTcont and HRTstab
Materials and methods: 8 lab-scale SBR reactors fed with high-strength wastewater (synthetic, but with complex composition)
Up to 59% to sludge
Sludge Dissolved in effluent CO2

8. Poly-β-hydroxybutyrate storage
PHB production is not a major mechanism in the capture and redirection of organics
Max. 2.3% of recovered carbon

9. Protein:carbohydrate ratio of EPS
Bioflocculation is probably the most important mechanism in the HiCS process, given the correlations between EPS compounds and removal efficiencies. (correlation coefficients: see end of this presentation)
Proteins:
Loosely: + correlated to CODcol removal
Tightly: + correlated to CODtot and CODdiss removal
Carbohydrates:
Loosely: – correlated to CODpart removal
Best performance at SRT 1 d and tc:ts 15:40 min
Effluent quality needs improvement!

10. Published in: Live fast, die young: Optimizing retention times in high-rate contact stabilization for maximal recovery of organics from wastewater Environmental Science & Technology 2016, 50(17), p 9781–9790
Francis A. Meerburg, Arifur Rahman, Tim Van Winckel, Koen Pauwels, Haydée De Clippeleir, Ahmed Al-Omari, Sudhir Murthy, Nico Boon, Siegfried E. Vlaeminck