Fluoride - Spring 2018

Philip Akpan, Tigran Mehrabyan, Desiree Sausele, and Victoria Zhang

Abstract

The Fluoride subteam seeks to develop a sustainable, inexpensive fluoride removal system for implementation in upcoming AguaClara plants located in India. Using the apparatus developed by previous semesters, the team continued running experiments testing how various concentrations of PACl affect fluoride removal. However, complications with the ability to measure fluoride concentrations required the team to shift its goals to designing a lab scale, gravity-powered system. The team finalized a design and completed construction of the new, electricity-free apparatus. The team plans to run experiments to test its fluoride removal capabilities after ensuring that there are no remaining water leaks.

String Digester - Fall 2018

Rosalie Krasnoff, Zsofia Szegletes, Madeline Garell, Antonio Martinez

ABSTRACT:

The string digester team’s objective for the Fall 2018 semester was to continue research on designing a new wastewater treatment system to eliminate problems associated with current trickling filters. To improve consistency in wastewater treatment, experiments were conducted using strings to optimize surface area. The long-term goal of this team is to create an efficient wastewater treatment system that will perform secondary and tertiary treatment on domestic wastewater. Initial tests involving different string materials, biofilm growth, and string spacing helped define design parameters for the construction of a functioning string digester.

UASB - Spring 2018

Zac Chen, Jennifer Jackson, Ian Cullings, and Ananya Gangadhar

Abstract:

Since Spring 2017, the AguaClara Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) Team has been working on a detailed design of modified, pilot-scale UASB reactor originally proposed in an EPA P3 proposal. A UASB reactor treats wastewater anaerobically and produces biogas as a by-product. Working towards that goal, the team has created Python code to record the design process and calculations for this AguaClara UASB. This document serves as a master guide for the design process.

UASB - Fall 2018

Ian Cullings, Ananya Gangadhar, Cara Smith, Nina Blahut

Abstract:

Since Spring 2017, the AguaClara Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) Team has been working on a detailed design of a pilot-scale UASB reactor. A UASB reactor treats wastewater anaerobically and produces biogas as a byproduct. Working towards that goal, the team has created Python code to record the design process and calculations for this AguaClara UASB.

During Fall 2018, the team continued design work on the UASB with the goal of completing a full design. The team also began researching flow patterns through the UASB to optimize treatment and prevent preferential pathways.

Humic Acid - Fall 2018

Matthew Lee, Vanessa Qi, Carolyn Wang

Abstract:

The Fall 2018 Humic Acid Team will focus on testing the effluent humic acid concentration changes as coagulant dosage increases for influent humic acid at 5mg/L, 10mg/L and 15mg/L trials. The new AccuView spectrophotometer will be used to measure the flow absorbance and corresponding species concentrations will be calculated from recorded absorbances with Beer's Law. The team expects to develop better understanding of humic acid concentration changes through the overall experimental system and how humic acid particles interact with clay particles inside the sedimentation model. This research will help AguaClara gain more knowledge of how Natural Organic Matter (NOM) interacts with coagulant in water.

StaRS Filter Theory - Spring 2018

Alison Valibuena, Liz Cantlebary, Dylan Vu

ABSTRACT:

Sand filters have historically been used to lower the turbidity of water and are still used in conventional filtration systems. The research in this report is based on the hypothesis that flocs are captured in rings created by filter grains, which implies there is an active filtration zone where empty pores become clogged by the flocs. This active zone moves throughout the bed until there is no remaining space for particles to clog. This research examines the factors that influence the time it takes for the filter to clog. Several key factors affect the failure time including size and density of flocs and were explored through experiments with different coagulant doses and with a constriction placed before the filter.

Trickling Filter - Spring 2018

String Digester — Jillian Whiting, Ben Gassaway, Rosie Krasnoff

ABSTRACT:

The trickling filter subteam's objective for this semester was to identify problems with trickling filters and to provide possible solutions to these problems. The long term goal of the team is to create a novel design for a trickling filter that will perform secondary and tertiary treatment on domestic wastewater in a future AguaClara wastewater treatment plant. After an extensive literature review, two bench scale experiments were conducted. The first test aimed to characterize the hydraulic behavior of a trickling filter and the flow of water through its packing media. The team used this information to identify the areas within the system with the greatest potential for improvements. From this information, the first prototype was built using strings to control flow paths and create a high surface area to volume ratio. Preliminary tests were conducted on the prototype to determine flow dispersion, residence time, and optimal string spacing.

UASB - Summer 2018

Ian Cullings, Isa Kaminsky, Ananya Gangadhar

ABSTRACT:

Since Spring 2017, the AguaClara Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) Team has been working on a detailed design of modified, pilot-scale UASB reactor originally proposed in an EPA P3 proposal. A UASB reactor treats wastewater anaerobically and produces biogas as a by-product. Working towards that goal, the team has created Python code to record the design process and calculations for this AguaClara UASB.

Over the summer of 2018, the UASB team's main goal has been to finish a complete design of a UASB wastewater treatment system, and fabricate an influent system. Future teams will work on fabrication of the entire system and testing at the Ithaca Area Wastewater Plant before implementation in Honduras.

StaRS Filter Theory - Fall 2018

Barbara Oramah, Lainey Reed, Emily Spiek

Abstract:

Stacked Rapid Sand Filtration is the last stage in an AguaClara treatment plant. The filters are used to further reduce the turbidity of water to meet EPA standards of 0.3 NTU or less. This semester, the Stacked Rapid Sand (StaRS) Filter Theory team constructed 3 StaRS filters with sand of varying sizes. These filters will be used in future experiments to analyze how specific parameters, including sand grain size and coagulant dosage, affect filter performance. The StaRS Filter Theory team has spent the semester compiling a manual so that future teams can run experiments and reconstruct experimental filters if necessary.

Fluoride Auto - Fall 2018

Fluoride Automated System

Tigran Mehrabyan, Janak Shah, Samba Sowe

Abstract:

The Fluoride Auto subteam seeks to develop a sustainable, inexpensive fluoride removal system for implementation in upcoming AguaClara plants in India. Using the apparatus developed in previous semesters, the team continued running experiments testing how various concentrations of PACl affect fluoride removal. The team then analyzed the variability of the Langmuir isotherm generated by the summer 2018 Fluoride team. This analysis factored into the overarching goal of developing a model to predict an optimal coagulant dosage given both influent and target effluent fluoride concentrations.