Speaking

The City of Akron was required by Consent Decree to install a Biological Chemically Enhanced Primary Treatment (BioCEPT) process at the Akron Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) capable of treating a minimum of 60 million gallons per day (MGD) of flow. The Akron WRF is designed to treat peak flows up to 220 MGD through primary and secondary treatment systems. The project goal was to construct flow equalization and high rate, wet weather treatment equivalent to secondary treatment for flows above 220 MGD and up to the plant design peak flow of 280 MGD.

The Consent Decree further required a full-scale Demonstration Study beginning six months following the completion of construction. The study had two objectives. First, it demonstrated whether the BioCEPT can achieve the effluent limits specified in the performance criteria contained in the Consent Decree. The second objective collected data to compare the performance of the BioCEPT system to Akron's conventional secondary treatment system in treating pathogens and conventional pollutant parameters during wet weather events. 

The study required extensive planning and preparation to have procedures in place to capture test data for 20 wet-weather events that can occur at any time. This presentation will discuss those planning efforts, including detecting and responding to a wet-weather event, coordination and training of operating and testing staff, couriers, and laboratories. The presentation will also cover issues related to plant flow variability, back-to-back events, equipment issues, and sample transport. The results and overall performance of the BioCEPT process documented during the study will also be presented.