Tag Archives: bacteria

The Importance of Disinfecting Drinking Water

Posted on December 21, 2012 by

The largest part of pathogenic microorganisms is removed from water during the primary water purification steps, flocculation, coagulation and filtration. However, water disinfection is still necessary in order to prevent drinking water from being harmful to our health. Microorganisms can … Continue reading →

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The Process of Nitrification

Posted on December 4, 2012 by

Biological nitrification is a method used to prevent oxygen depletion from nitrogenous oxygen demand (NOD) in the receiving waters. Nitrification is simply the conversion of ammonia to nitrate in the treatment plant rather than in the receiving water. Nitrification may be … Continue reading →

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Seasonal Changes

Posted on September 19, 2012 by

As the days continue to shorten and the temperature drops, it’s time to think about what changes need to be made to the wastewater treatment plant to continue to be in compliance during the colder months. As the air temperature … Continue reading →

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Charting Settlometer Results

Posted on June 22, 2012 by

To determine the settling volume of sludge, operators will typically run a 30-minute settling test. But that only determines the settling volume. What about the sludge’s settling characteristics? Operators must find out how well the sludge is settling, if the … Continue reading →

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What’s Lurking in Your Drinking Water?

Posted on May 18, 2012 by

A hot topic in the drinking water industry is the issue of emerging contaminants in drinking water. There are several bacteria, microbes and chemicals that drinking water professionals will encounter when regulating drinking water over the next few years. Drinking … Continue reading →

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Aerobic Digestion

Posted on May 15, 2012 by

One of the major jobs at a wastewater treatment plant is the wasting of sludge produced during the process of treating wastewater. The sludge wasted from the secondary clarifier is normally sent to an aerobic digester, a thickener or both. … Continue reading →

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Bacteria and Me

Posted on May 1, 2012 by

Microbes are in the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink. Additionally, each liter of sea water contains up to a billion bacteria. Therefore, it is no surprise that microbes inhabit the human body. In … Continue reading →

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Sludge Age

Posted on March 16, 2012 by

It was break time during a class I was teaching when an operator came up and asked me, “Ricketts, what does sludge age really mean?” And I had to think for a minute. My response was “It’s a measure of … Continue reading →

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Feeding Package Treatment Plants

Posted on March 15, 2012 by

As an inspector, I had the privilege of inspecting about 25 small, extended aeration package treatment plants in three counties in the Commonwealth. I learned many things about wastewater treatment from the plants and operators. One of the most important … Continue reading →

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Anaerobic Digestion

Posted on February 2, 2012 by

About a year ago as I was on vacation and passing through a neighboring state, I began to notice a rotten-egg smell in the air. As I continued down the interstate, my eyes started to water, and it was hard … Continue reading →

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