First Name:
Konstantinos
Last Name:
Plakas
Type of BP
Technical solution
Typology of Non- Conventional Water Resources (NCWR) What kind of NCWR do you deal with ?:
Municipal wastewater (MWW)
What are the challenges raised by your Best Practice?
Water for irrigation and food production is not available, Poor quality of treated water, High health risk, Environmental pollution, Overexploited groundwater, NCW not valued locally, Move towards zero discharge at local level, High treatment cost, Better selection of Implementation criteria of NCW systems, Inadequate decisions by decision-makers, Reclacitrance to use treated NCW
How could you describe your Best Practice?
The APOC system is considered an integrated system that treats wastewater, both black and grey water, mostly at community, or even larger, scale, particularly promising for decentralized treatment implementations. It comprises of three processes, the anaerobic digestion (AD), the constructed wetlands (CWs), and a solar process based on the photo-Fenton technique for the cost-effective treatment of urban wastewater, with minimal operating cost and maximum environmental benefits. The three components can be modified by the plant designer, depending on the influent characteristics and the treatment objectives. Specifically, different types of AD reactors and CWs can be applied, whereas the post-treatment in a novel solar raceway pond reactor (RPR) is a distinctive feature of the APOC system.
Please describe your Best Practice in 5 keywords?
anaerobic digestion, constructed wetland, solar disinfection; , solar photo-Fenton, wastewater reuse
Please provide any links to useful documentations (including website)presenting your Best Practice
In which area has your Best Practice been implemented ?
Urban area
Best Practice location implementation (Country)
Greece
Localisation
POINT (-1.130654 37.99224), POINT (35.8497 34.4367)
Who are the beneficiaries and/or the target group of your Best Practice ?
Water Utilities, Municipalities, Farmers, Management Authorities
f the Best Practice has been implemented within a partnership, who were your partners ?
The BP has been developed in the context of AQUACYCLE project, funded by the 2014-2020 ENI CBC Med programme. The partnership includes seven (7) partners from 5 countries:
Centre for Research and Technology, Hellas (CERTH), Greece
Plataforma Solar De Almeria - Centro de Investigaciones Energeticas, Medioambientales y Tecnologicas (PSA/CIEMAT), Spain
Integrated Resources Management (IRM) Company Limited (IRMCo), Malta
Université Libanaise (UL), Lebanon
Centre des Recherches et des Technologies des Eaux (CERTE), Tunisia
Centre International des Technologies de l’ Environnement de Tunis (CITET), Tunisia
Entidad de Saneamiento y Depuración de la Regiónd Murcia (ESAMUR), Spain
Centre for Research and Technology, Hellas (CERTH), Greece
Plataforma Solar De Almeria - Centro de Investigaciones Energeticas, Medioambientales y Tecnologicas (PSA/CIEMAT), Spain
Integrated Resources Management (IRM) Company Limited (IRMCo), Malta
Université Libanaise (UL), Lebanon
Centre des Recherches et des Technologies des Eaux (CERTE), Tunisia
Centre International des Technologies de l’ Environnement de Tunis (CITET), Tunisia
Entidad de Saneamiento y Depuración de la Regiónd Murcia (ESAMUR), Spain
Have you involved stakeholders?
Yes
Please list them
In the context of AQUACYCLE project several stakeholders have been invited in workshops organized in Spain, Tunisia and Lebanon with the aim to collect a) feedback on the challenges faced to increase the reuse of treated effluent, b) expectations and training needs on the APOC technology, and c) feedback and contributions to the online decision support platform developed by AQUACYCLE in regards to the positioning of APOC plants in the three target countries. These include public administrations, municipalities, agriculture associations, farmers, NGO, engineering companies, academia, research community, general public.
What are the obstacles to implementation of Best Practice ?
Lack of dissemination of success stories related to NCW, Isuffi cient funding instruments to support solution for NCW, Lack of public acceptance of water reuse, Other (Please specify below)
Other obstacles
Lack of funding for the continuous operation of BPs (at demo scale) after the life time of the project The lack of interest by the involved stakeholders/end users (no regulations enforcement concerning the need to treat and reuse municipal wastewater).
Did you receive funding for the research and development of the proposed BP?
Yes
Please indicate the source of funding
EU funding
What difficulties you have faced to access the funding ?
The funding is the result of a competitive process like all RTD projects funded by the EU. The AQUACYCLE partnership submitted a project proposal for standard projects under the 2014-2020 ENI CBC MED programme on the thematic “Water Efficiency”. In case of failure, the development of APOC technology would have delayed, due to lack of funding.
Has your Best Practice been validated/upscaled?
APOC technology is currently validated at demonstration level in operational environment (TRL7) (APOC demo plant of 5 m3/d treatment capacity in Blanca Wastewater Treatment Plant, Murcia, Spain), while two additional APOC demo plants of 5-15 m3/d treatment capacity will be installed in Lebanon (Tripoli, Deddeh Koura) and Tunisia (Bent Saidane) by end 2022 and mid-2023, respectively.
Is there the potential to exploit/outscale the Best Practice?
Yes, the capitalization plan of AQUACYCLE project coupled with the many outreach activities (participation in international fora/exhibitions, networking with similar projects and organizations) aim to promote the replicability of the APOC system as an eco-innovative system of wastewater treatment and reuse around the Mediterranean. Already, water treatment companies (involved with the construction of the APOC demo plant(s)) have expressed their interest to upscale the APOC system.
Do you have or know any platform of sharing Best Practice that you would like to link to this inventory platform?
No
Does your Best Practice contribute to an innovation? If so, please provide a short description of the innovative component
In comparison to conventional domestic wastewater treatment processes and other tertiary water reclamation methods APOC is characterized by distinct attributes in relation to cost, social acceptability, simplicity of design, construction, operation and maintenance, hydrogeological conditions and local availability of materials and skills. These attributes are related with the innovative and effective combination of processes which are less intensive, consume less energy, based on natural processes and result in products of significant added value (biogas, solid fertilizer and clean water for reuse).
What technolog(ies) and/or tool(s) has(ve) been used for your Best Practice ?
the cost-effective treatment of urban wastewater (with the acronym APOC) , comprises anaerobic digestion (AD), constructed wetlands (CWs), a novel solar Raceway Pond Reactor (RPR), for final disinfection and removal of organic micropollutants, (e.g. residual pharmaceuticals and degradation by products, etc.).
Please indicate the acronyms of used &/or developed technologies/Tools
(i) Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB), (ii) Anaerobic Baffled Reactor (ABR), (iii) Anaerobic Sequencing Batch Reactor (ASBR), (iv) Anaerobic Fluidized Bed Reactor (AFBR), (v) the Anaerobic Filter (AF), Anaerobic Fixed Film Reactor (AFFR) , CWs: Constructed Wetland
Please indicate the TRL associated with your Best Practice
TRL7 : System prototype demonstration in operational environment
Flow rate (m3/day)
5.00
What is the necessary area to implement your Best Practice (m2) ?
250.00
Salinity (mg/l)
350.00
Suspended solids SS (mg/l)
350.00
COD (mg/l), Chemical Oxygen Demand
715.00
Comment : COD
490-940
BOD5 (mg/l)
475.00
Comment : BOD5
350-600
Phosphorus content (mg/l) (orthophosphates, other)
9.50
Comment : Phosphorus content
4-15
Nitrogen content (mg/l)
64.00
40-88
Pathogens
Escherichia coli B-D-Glucuronidase+ (5.7-6.3 log MPN/100ml) Clostridium perfringens spores (4-4.5 log cfu/100ml)
Flow rate (m3/day) of treated NCW
5.00
What is the average number of people producing this NCW flow per day (number of population)
35.00
Efficiency (BOD5 % Removal)
>98% (in the exit of the CWs)
Comment : Efficiency (COD % Removal):
>97% (in the exit of the CWs)
Efficiency (SS % Removal):
100% (in the exit of the CWs)
Comment : Other (% Removal)
100% Ecoli (in the exit of the SRPR) 100% Clostridium perfringens spores (in the exit of the SRPR)
What is the impact on the beneficiaries of your Best Practice ?:
The beneficiaries include the staff of public and private entities, sewerage companies, engineers, constructors, operators of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), the farmers and the general public/local community. For the latter, the APOC system contributes to the provision of an additional water supply that would otherwise be lost, thus preventing the high cost of importing freshwater and conveying it over a long distance. In areas where the water demand is not met: Additional revenue from the sale of reclaimed water and savings in the form of avoided or delayed costs of developing new fresh water sources and less treatment of surface water abstraction. For farmers, the APOC system provides an alternative water source for irrigation, that is readily available all year, as well as additional source of fertilizer (solid digestate) and nutrients, lessening the need to apply synthetic fertilizers. A decentralized APOC reuse system could reduce the impact of combined sewer overflows emissions and recharge local rivers to maintain the ecology and enable aquifer recharge. Improvement in public health, by protecting downstream water supplies from contaminations (and so, indirectly decreasing the costs of treatment for those downstream communities.
Total Cost (€):
0.00
Capital Cost (€):
220.00
Capital Cost
220,000.00€ (5m3/d treatment capacity)
Ecosystem, Toilet Flushing, Garden Irrigation, Field irrigation, Recreation Area
5
Price of treated NCW
Under evaluation
How your Best Practice is economically feasible ?
The BP is a self-sustained system since the connection to the grid is not necessary. The necessary energy required is produced by Renewable Energy Sources, including solar (via photovoltaic panels) and biogas, generated by the anaerobic digestion of the organic content of the municipal wastewater. APOC can be implemented using local skills and know-how to provide context-specific sanitation services and get optimum efficiency of the system. Moreover, it can provide a solid byproduct (anaerobic solid digestate) that can be used for land fertilization while APOC treated effluent can be used for urban, industrial, agricultural uses and groundwater recharge.
Is your Best Practice economically viable ?
8
Is your Best Practice environmentally sustainable ?
10
If there was a sustainability assessment carried out, what are the result of this assessment ?
A cost benefit analysis will be performed during the next year that will identify the return on investment taking into account the capital, variable (operational), and fixed costs, as well as the environmental benefits.
Comment : Number of jobs created &/or preserved
Within AQUACYCLE project, in the context of which the APOC system has been developed and demonstrated, more than 40 jobs have been created by the collaborating partners in five countries (Greece, Malta, Spain, Tunisia, Lebanon).
Please indicate the other various social impact of your Best Practice :
Preservation of living environment, Sustaining natural ecosystems
To which Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) your Best Practice contributes?
SDG3: Good Health and Well-being, SDG6: Clean Water and Sanitation, SDG11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, SDG13: Climate Action, SDG14: Life Below Water
APOC can be designed for a single objective, which then would be just to treat water, or with multiple objectives, whereby treating water is always included. Engineers should seek however, multi-objective solutions. The most important criteria that must be assessed in process analysis and selection of APOC system include a) process applicability, b) applicable flow range, c) applicable flow variation, d) influent wastewater characteristics, e) climatic constraints, f) energy requirements, g) operating and maintenance requirements, h) complexity. Along this direction, the implementation of the APOC system has shown that all three components have to be designed to operate over a wide range of flowrates. AD and ST processes work best at a relatively constant flowrate. If the flow variation is too great, flow equalization may be necessary. The characteristics of the influent wastewater affects strongly the selection of the AD and CW types to be used and the requirements for their proper operation. Considering that AD is the first barrier against organic abatement, a range of 200-1000 mg/L COD and/or 100-500 mg/L BOD, is recommended. Temperature can affect the performance of all biological and chemical reactions, carried out especially in the AD and the solar RPR. High (>50 oC) and low (<10 oC) temperatures can create problems to the operation of the AD, resulting to the reduction of the maximum specific microbial growth and feedstock utilization rates, thus decreasing the efficiency. The optimum temperature is around 35 oC. The energy requirements of APOC systems as well as the probable energy cost are generally very low. APOC is based on natural processes (constructed wetland), runs on renewable energy (solar RPR) and produces biogas. However, the energy cost must be known when designing a cost-effective APOC system. APOC systems require minimal operation and maintenance. The main maintenance tasks are related with the cleaning of the pump station, the pipes and distribution devices, the suction sludge devices, etc. which in turn will depend of the pre-treatment quality. In CWs, regular maintenance should ensure that water is not short-circuiting, or backing up because of fallen vegetation blocking the wetland outlet. Vegetation may have to be periodically cut back or thinned out. The most common maintenance activities are pulling out undesirable plant species, removing dead vegetation (not dormant vegetation), and cleaning pipes. In the case of the solar RPR, the major maintenance tasks consist in the photoreactor cleaning, periodic pumps and paddle wheel revision and probes cleaning and calibration.