How low can you go? A South Florida facility examines several phosphorus and nitrogen removal alternatives for potable water reuse

摘要

Acomprehensive nutrient removal evaluation for a water reclamation facility in South Florida to address projected potable water shortages was performed. However, even though the proposed water resource recovery facility (WRRF) anticipated the use of advanced treatment processes - including membrane filtration, reverse osmosis (RO), ultraviolet disinfection, and advanced oxidation -effluent water quality projections showed that effluent would not comply with the locally imposed criteria. These criteria included an antidegradation policy for total phosphorus (TP) and a limit of 0.5 mg/L for total ammonia-nitrogen (TAN). These strict surface water discharge criteria were triggered after modeling in the recharge zone had predicted that product-water migration in the exceptionally transmissive aquifer would affect nearby waterbodies.