The waste management and utilization class for biosystems engineers focuses on the treatment and utilization of wastewater. Both municipal and agricultural wastes are considered and designed for. The first half of the class consists of different ways to determine the different parameters of waste water. Different chemical and physical properties are discussed and laboratory analyses are performed to determine chemical oxygen demand, total nitrogen and phosphorous and solid substance amounts in various waste waters. In the second part of the class, we learn about different types of treatment practices including different reactors, anaerobic digesters and natural treatment of waste. We also discuss how to utilize waste for agricultural processes.
Class Trip to Auburn Waste Treatment Plant
One of the highlights of the class was the trip to the Auburn City wastewater treatment plant located on Sandhill Road. According to the handout provided during the tour, this treatment plant was constructed in 1985 is used to process all of Auburn's wastewater, serving a population of 54,000 people. The average influent during 2014 was 7.7 MGD and it sustained a peak inflow of 23.6 MGD. The plant utilized bay screens for primary treatment, aeration basins, clarifiers, gravity thickeners, digersters, lagoons, belt presses, and state of the art UV disinfection lights. Pictures from our trip can be seen to the right.
|
|