With water shortages impacting the world, water scarcity is becoming one of the biggest threats facing communities. In fact, water scarcity is an issue that is being addressed as one of the UN’s primary millennium development goals. In turn, communities are developing projects and technologies to improve the effects of water utilization. That is why one wastewater treatment process in Houston, TX is well-recognized.
How Water is Recycled and Reclaimed
Wastewater in Houston and elsewhere is treated so it can be used again in industrial applications and so more fresh water can be used in the potable water supply. Besides using a wastewater treatment process to recycle water, rain harvesting, desalination, and the transfer of water from one location to the next are used to battle issues with scarcity, too.
However, unlike the other forms of reclamation, wastewater treatment presents both a short-term and long-term solution to scarcity. Wastewater is the water that is utilized by commercial and industrial establishments and residences that is too polluted for further use. The water contains suspended and dissolved inorganic and organic substances, including by-products from carbohydrates, synthetic detergents, soaps, fats, and synthetic and natural organic chemicals.
How the Process Works
During the wastewater treatment process then, the water undergoes a biological change. The process uses naturally occurring microorganisms to break down suspended and dissolved organic solids. The settled wastewater, in turn, enters aeration tanks. The tanks blow air into the water to encourage microorganism growth.
The microorganisms consume the nutrients and organic pollutants in the water. Afterward, the wastewater is transported to a secondary sedimentation tank. In the tank the biomass settles to the bottom and is concentrated as sludge. The clarified water is then moved to a tank for the third stage of treatment. During this phase, chlorine is added to remove hazardous pathogens.