Neptume ; no-discharge energy-efficient prototype for the treatment of urban municipal effluent

Abstract

NEPTUME is an R&I project funded by the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST), dealing with the treatment of raw municipal effluent to produce quality second class water for irrigation (and other) purposes. This paper presents an innovative two-stage process which uses the combination of a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) coupled with a Membrane Bioreactor Filtration (MBR) incorporating the benefits of both processes. This setup produces a very high quality disinfected second class treated sewage effluent (TSE) (COD<100mg/l, TSS<10mg/l, NH4-N<5mg/l). Furthermore, TSE is further polished through either a Reverse Osmosis (RO) system or Phytoremediation. The relative treatment performance of the various stages is assessed, compared to Conventional Activated Sludge (CAS) method of treatment and related to energy use as well as overall consumer perception.