Evaluation of Double Perforated Baffles Installed in Rectangular Secondary Clarifiers

• Main Author: Byonghi Lee
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2017-06-01
• Series: Water
• Subjects: rectangular clarifier; secondary clarifier; double perforated baffle
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/9/6/407

Double perforated baffles in rectangular secondary clarifiers were studied to determine whether they contribute to producing high-quality effluents. The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations indicated that bio-flocculation occurred at the front of the baffle and the longitudinal movement of the settled sludge was hampered whenever the clarifier had high inflow. Simulation results showed that the rectangular clarifier with the double perforated baffle produced an effluent with lower suspended solid (SS) concentrations than the effluent from the clarifier without the baffle. To verify the simulation results, a double perforated baffle was installed in two of the 48 rectangular clarifiers in a 300,000 m3/d-capacity wastewater treatment plant. To study the effect of the baffle on solid removal, the effluent turbidity of the clarifier with and without the double perforated baffle was measured simultaneously. Experimental data showed that the double perforated baffle played a significant role in reducing effluent turbidity. The effluent turbidity reduction ratio with the baffle decreased when the Sludge Volume Index (SVI) of the Mixed Liquor Suspended Solids (MLSS) was below 100 mL/g. The overall average reduction ratio was 24.3% for SVI < 100 mL/g and 45.1% for SVI > 100 mL/g. The results of this study suggest that double perforated baffles must be installed in secondary rectangular clarifiers to produce high-quality effluent regardless of the operational conditions.