Engineering Commons^™

Field Study Of Electrochemical Disinfection Of Municipal Wastewater, Luis De Grau Vidal

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Research on electrochemical disinfection of municipal wastewater has been conducted at the University of New Orleans using a continuous flow electrochemical reactor connected to a direct current (DC) power supply changing its polarity and varying the electrode distance. Bacterial inactivation and chlorine production were the main parameters that were recorded.

After months of research, it was determined that the electrochemical disinfection reactor is efficient and has a great potential for the future. There is no need to use chlorine and it has low operation costs.

The following design recommendations for an electrochemical disinfection unit were given:

• A detention time of …

Slope Stability Enhancement Of An Upstream Tailings Dam: Laboratory Testing And Numerical Modelling, Yazeed A. Alsharedah

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Mine tailings are the byproduct of mining activities, which need to be disposed of once the ore is extracted. They can be disposed of in either dry or wet forms. The latter is most common with the tailings being disposed of in the form of slurry inside retention structures. The retention structure may be a natural, manmade, or built dam, which is the case in most of nowadays mining locations. In this thesis, improving the stability of an upstream tailings dam using soil additives is investigated. The experimental phase of this study involved laboratory tests conducted to characterize mine tailings …

Silver Nanoparticle Transport Through Soil: Illuminating The Governing Pore-Scale Processes, Ian L. Molnar

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Engineered nanoparticles are widely used and will eventually be released to the subsurface environment and contaminate groundwater resources. However, the transport of engineered nanoparticles through soil is currently not well understood and cannot be modelled in any fundamental manner, placing groundwater resources at risk from nanoparticle contamination. This inability to accurately simulate transport is due to a lack of experimental information on nanoparticle interactions in the pore spaces of real soils.

This thesis illuminates the pore-scale processes governing silver nanoparticle transport through soil. In addition, it examines the influence of surface chemistry and grain/pore distributions on those processes. For the …

Smouldering Remediation: Transient Effects Of Front Propagation, Laura L. Kinsman

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Remediation of sites contaminated with non-aqueous phase liquids (NAPLs) presents a significant challenge, particularly for complex and high molecular weight compounds such as coal tar and creosote. Self-sustaining Treatment for Active Remediation (STAR) is an innovative remediation technology based on the principles of smouldering combustion, which has shown potential for rapid destruction of source zone contaminants. The success of smouldering remediation has been previously demonstrated both at the laboratory and field scale, however, these studies have focused primarily on the overall degree of remediation. Laboratory column experiments were employed to identify key transient processes that have the potential to influence …

Assessment Of Biomass Burning And Mineral Dust Impacts On Air Quality And Regional Climate, Xinyi Dong

Doctoral Dissertations

East Asia is frequently influenced by dust storms and biomass burning. This study conducts a comprehensive investigation of its kind based on data analysis with surface measurements, satellite products, and model simulations. The objective of this study is to improve the understanding of the impacts of biomass burning and dust on air quality and regional climate. The study period covers March and April from 2006 to 2010. Biomass burning from Peninsular Southeast Asia (PSEA) has significant annual variations by up to 60% within the study period. The impact of biomass burning on air quality is mainly confined within the upper …

Removal Of Trace Organic Compounds In Domestic Wastewater Using Recirculating Packed-Bed Media Filters, Brittani Nikole Perez

Masters Theses

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) are commonly detected in the environment resulting from their survival from conventional wastewater treatment systems. More information is needed about the fate and transfer of these trace organic compounds in domestic wastewater and their associated risks so that efficient strategies for their removal can be developed for both large/small scale treatment systems. This study aimed to determine whether onsite wastewater treatment systems were capable of providing PPCP removal, in addition to quantifying different forms of removal (biodegradation/sorption). A column study was constructed to determine the removal efficiencies of 3 target PPCPs, endocrine disrupting compound …

Monitoring And Modeling The Hydrological Performance Of Extensive Green Roof Systems, Joseph Seidl

Theses and Dissertations

Urban stormwater runoff causes many problems for watersheds located within large metropolitan areas, including such detrimental effects as flooding, erosion, pollution, and the increased risk of combined sewerage overflows. Increased amounts of impervious areas resulting from urban sprawl have also been shown to escalate stormwater flows, which exacerbates water management issues in these metropolitan areas. Water resource engineers have progressively turned toward green infrastructure to solve stormwater problems, and green roof systems represent one type of this green infrastructure. As of current, however, green roof systems are largely underused in as an effective stormwater management tool.

The major factor limiting …

Spatial Variation In Fine Sediment And Microbial Transport Along Stream Cross Sections: Implications To Modeling And Monitoring, Thomas Michael Walton

Masters Theses

Spatial variations in suspended concentrations of fine sediment and indicator bacteria in streams is noted as a source of uncertainty in various applications of water quality datasets. Without proper analysis of the persistence and reasoning for this variance in natural systems, a finer resolution of model calibration is necessary to account for spatial variation in stream cross sections. This level of calibration has become of utmost importance due to technological advancements presenting the ability for water quality modeling frameworks to generate a much finer resolution of outputs. While the importance of model calibration has been noted for remediating levels of …

Hydrodynamic Modeling Of The Green Bay Of Lake Michigan Using The Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code, Paula Estefania Cedillo

Theses and Dissertations

In this project we created a hydrodynamic model of the Lower Green Bay of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin, United States using the Visual Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC). The model includes four tributary rivers to Lower Green Bay as well as the open boundary flow conditions at Chambers Island. This case study is used to: 1) compare the results obtained with a previous study of Lower Green Bay to validate the creation of the model 2) examine the hydrodynamics of the bay, and 3) create a framework for future studies at Lower Green Bay. The Geographic Information used to build …

Indicator Bacteria In Beach Environments, Brett Bevers

Theses and Dissertations

Bacterial presence in the environment has become a growing concern in recent years. The exposure of the public to elevated levels of microbes in the environment has been linked with respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses. It is important to understand the behavior of bacteria in the environment in order to address public health concerns. This project was intended to improve our understanding of bacteria in the environment that are used as indicators for fecal pollution. Using the standard indicator species E. coli and Enterococci data was collected at Bradford Beach in Milwaukee Wisconsin throughout the summer months of 2013 and 2014. …

Electrochemical Enhancement Of Butanol Production And Xylose Consumption In Pure And Mixed Culture Fermentations, Jovan Popovic

All Dissertations

The volatility of foreign and domestic petroleum markets has prompted initiatives for the development of alternative liquid energy carriers which have the capacity to accommodate our current transportation infrastructure. Butanol, which has an energy density similar to that of gasoline and can be produced through the fermentation of carbohydrates by solventogenic Clostridia, has been investigated as a supplement or direct replacement to gasoline. However, most butanol fermentations rely on glucose as a feedstock which is in direct competition with our food supply, and this requires the exploration of alternative fermentable substrates. This study investigates the use of electrochemical fermentation modifications …

Two-Phase Anaerobic Digestion To Reduce The Nox Emission Potential Of Biogas, Nathaniel Manuel Olivas

Master's Theses

Anaerobic digestion can be used to decrease the mass of organic wastes to be disposed of while producing useful biogas (CH₄ and CO₂) for heat or power production, but in air basins with strict emissions limits, biogas combustion is difficult to implement due to the high costs of controlling NOx emissions. NOx production can be minimized by blending H₂ gas with CH₄ at a volume ratio of 15:85 H₂:CH₄, which allows burning at ultra-lean air-to-fuel ratios. For biogas systems, a potential low-cost NOx control strategy is to produce H₂-CH …

Production And Harvest Of Microalgae In Wastewater Raceways With Resource Recycling, Alexander Colin Roberts

Master's Theses

Microalgae can be grown on municipal wastewater media to both treat the wastewater and produce feedstock for algae biofuel production. However the reliability of treatment must be demonstrated, as well as high areal algae productivity on recycled wastewater media and efficient sedimentation harvesting. This processes was studied at pilot scale in the present research.

A pilot facility was operated with nine CO₂-supplemented raceway ponds, each with a 33-m² surface area and a 0.3-m depth, continuously from March 6, 2013 through September 24, 2014. The ponds were operated as three sets of triplicates with two sets continuously fed …

Assessing The Water Quality Benefits Of Green Infrastructure Stormwater Control Measures., Sam Abdollahian

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Permeable pavements systems and tree boxes are a common type of Green Infrastructure (GI) Stormwater Control Measures (SCMs) that are often used for mitigating the stormwater runoff. In this study two permeable pavement systems and a tree box installed along parking lanes of an urban street in Louisville, KY, were investigated to evaluate their performance on improving stormwater runoff quality. The water quality monitoring was accomplished by analysis of samples collected from stormwater runoff and the captured stormwater volume at the bottom of the permeable pavements’ sub-base reservoir and by a drain gauge (lysimeter) installed in the tree box. Pollutants …

Bankfull Geomorphic Relationships And Hec-Ras Assessment In Small Catchments Of The Cumberland Plateau Ecoregion, Ryan Lee Hodges

Masters Theses

There is a great need for state governments to have effective watershed restoration and mitigation efforts to return degraded ecosystems to a stable, healthy condition. Given the growing investment in stream restoration efforts, there is an urgent need for tools to assess and improve the effectiveness of restoration efforts at local, state, and nationwide scales. In 2000 there was less than ten stream restoration permits provided by the state of Tennessee and has increased each year with almost forty permits issued in 2013. To better achieve successful stream restoration, appropriate channel designs must be used that reflect the hydraulic conditions …

Resource Recovery Through Halophyte Production In Marine Aquaponics: An Evaluation Of The Nutrient Cycling And The Environmental Sustainability Of Aquaponics, Suzanne Boxman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Aquaculture, the farming of aquatic animals and plants, is an important component of global food production, which supplies a nutritious protein source for millions of people. Interest in improving the sustainability of aquaculture has led to the development of aquaponics in which fish production is combined with plant production to create zero-discharge systems. A need for more fundamental science and engineering research on marine aquaculture and growing interest in production of halophytes motivated this novel research on marine aquaponics. One objective was to evaluate the growth and nutrient removal capacity of halophytes in marine aquaponics. Bench-scale studies were conducted to …

Ammonium Removal From High Strength Wastewater Using A Hybrid Ion Exchange Biological Process, Veronica Ester Aponte-Morales

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Anaerobic digestion (AD) has been shown to be an effective technique for energy recovery and stabilization of livestock wastes, municipal sludges and industrial wastewaters. However, further treatment is required to remove nitrogen from AD effluents to avoid detriments to surface and ground waters. The high free ammonia (FA) concentrations present in AD effluents can inhibit nitrification processes in conventional biological nitrogen removal (BNR) systems. The overall goal of this research was to develop a process for removal of nitrogen from AD swine waste (ADSW) effluent. The proposed solution was to incorporate particulate chabazite, which has a high cation exchange capacity, …

Pathogen Removal In Natural Wastewater Treatment And Resource Recovery Systems: Solutions For Small Cities In An Urbanizing World, Matthew Eric Verbyla

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sanitation, renewable energy, and food security are among the most pressing global development needs of the century, especially for small cities with rapid population growth. Currently, 53% of the world’s population either lacks access to improved sanitation or discharges fecal waste to the environment without treatment. Furthermore, 80% of food consumed in developing regions is produced by 500 million small farms, and while many of them are still rain-fed, irrigated agriculture is increasing. The post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals, recently adopted by the United Nations, include targets to address the water-energy-food nexus. Wastewater reuse in agriculture can be an important solution …

Evaluation Of Ferrate Preoxidation For Drinking Water Treatment, Joseph E. Goodwill

Doctoral Dissertations

Ferrate (Fe(IV)) has been proposed as a viable alternative for pre-oxidation in drinking water treatment (Jiang & Lloyd, 2002; Sharma, Kazama, Jiangyong, & Ray, 2005). The primary advantages of ferrate include a strong oxidation potential without the formation of halogenated by-products. In addition, the by-product of ferrate oxidation, ferric iron (Fe(III)), may have beneficial impacts on downstream particle destabilization and removal processes. Also, ferrate has disinfectant properties and may also provide pathogen inactivation in drinking water (Sharma et al., 2005). However, despite these advantages, there is a dearth of research experience that examines the implications of using ferrate for treating …

Evaluating Corrosion Resistance Of Reinforcing Steel In A Novel Green Concrete, Andrea Carolina Ramirez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Reinforced concrete structures are expected to have a long service life with minimal maintenance. Corrosion of reinforcing steel is a major factor in reducing concrete structure lifespan, as corrosion products occupy a larger volume than that of the consumed steel and generate tensile stresses that crack the concrete cover. Procedures to control corrosion in traditional concrete, which is made with Portland-cement (PC), have been well established. However, in recent years novel concrete materials based on alternatives to normally cured PC have been developed in response to global needs to reduce greenhouse gases emissions. In particular, a promising new cement has …

High-Solids Anaerobic Digestion Of The Organic Fraction Of Municipal Solid Waste State Of The Art, Outlook In Florida, And Enhancing Methane Yields From Lignocellulosic Wastes, Gregory Richard Hinds

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a biotechnology that employs natural microbial metabolism under oxygen-free conditions to stabilize organic waste. AD has been shown to be the most environmentally sustainable technology for treating the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW), as it allows for the recovery of energy and nutrients from the waste. AD of OFMSW also saves landfill space and reduces leachate generation and fugitive methane emissions from landfills. High-solids AD (HS-AD) technologies (those designed to process feedstocks with >15% total solids content) have been shown to yield additional benefits when compared with liquid AD (L-AD) for treating OFMSW, including …

Techno-Economic Analysis Of Protein Concentrate Produced By Flash Hydrolysis Of Microalgae, Alexander Nana Yaw Asiedu

Civil & Environmental Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Process simulation and techno-economic analysis of 95wt.% protein concentrate from microalgae has been performed using SuperPro Designer v. 9.0. This work, first of its kind, is focused on the economic analysis of protein concentrate that includes processes such as microalgae cultivation, harvesting, protein extraction and drying steps. A baseline capacity of 160 MT/day protein concentrate production on commercial basis has been analyzed. This throughput requires 336 MT/day dry algae (54 wt.% protein). The amount of carbon dioxide required to grow this quantum of algae is estimated to be 648 MT/day, which is produced from an in situ 21 MW power …

A Risk Assessment Of The Impacts Of Coastal Flooding And Sea Level Rise On The Existing And New Pump Stations 113, Norfolk, Va, David A. Pezza

Civil & Environmental Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The author assessed the risk to a wastewater pump station and a planned replacement located nearby due to coastal flooding and rising sea levels. The locations for the pump stations are in the Larchmont neighborhood by the Lafayette River tidal estuaries in Norfolk, Virginia. The Lafayette River is a tributary to the Elizabeth River, which flows to the Chesapeake Bay. The low-lying areas along the river are subject to coastal surges caused by tropical and extra-tropical storms that flood the bay.

The region is considered one of the urban areas most exposed to the accelerating rate of rising sea levels. …

Comparing Nutrient Recovery Via Rapid (Flash Hydrolysis) And Conventional Hydrothermal Liquefaction Processes For Microalgae Cultivation, Caleb Richard Talbot

Civil & Environmental Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Algal biofuels have the potential to provide a scalable source of renewable fuels in the near future. The high nutrient use in algae cultivation and its recovery and recycling is one of the challenges that may limit the scalability and sustainability of algal biofuels. The present study evaluates the use of Hydrolysate obtained after Flash Hydrolysis (FH) of Scenedesmus at 280 C as a nutrient source for microalgae cultivation. FH Hydrolysate nutrient recycling was compared with low temperature batch Hydrothermal Liquefaction (HTL) nutrient recycling. Oocystis and Scenedesmus were cultivated using Hydrolysate as a partial phosphorous (P) and nitrogen (N) source. …

The Contribution Of Syntrophic Fatty-Acid Degrading Microbial Communities To Anaerobic Digester Function And Stability, Prince Peter Mathai

Dissertations (1934 -)

Anaerobic digestion (AD), the conversion of complex organic matter to methane, occurs through a series of reactions mediated by different guilds of microorganisms. AD process imbalances, such as organic overload or high organic loading rates (OLR), can result in the accumulation of volatile fatty acids (VFA) e.g., propionate, which must be degraded to maintain stable reactor function. VFAs are metabolized by syntrophic fatty-acid degrading bacteria (SFAB) in association with methanogenic archaea (collectively, syntrophic microbial communities, SMC). Despite their indispensable role in AD, little is known about the ecology of SFAB, especially under stressed conditions. To facilitate ecological studies, four quantitative …

Application Of 3d Printing Technology In Porous Anode Fabrication For Enhanced Power Output Of Microbial Fuel Cells, Bin Bian

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) are widely researched for application in wastewater treatment. However, the current anodes used in MFCs often suffer from high fabrication cost and uncontrollable pore sizes. In this thesis, three-dimensional printing technique was utilized to fabricate anodes with different micro pore sizes for MFCs. Copper coating and carbonization were applied to the printed polymer anodes to increase the conductivity and specific surface area. Voltages of MFCs with various anodes were measured as well as other electrochemical tests such as linear sweep voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. 3D copper porous anode produced higher maximum voltages and power densities …

Influence Of Waves On Groundwater Flows And Geochemistry In A Sandy Nearshore Aquifer: A Combined Field And Modelling Study, Spencer S. Malott

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Waves are known to influence the flux of pollutants to coastal waters via groundwater discharge. This study combines field measurements with numerical groundwater modelling to evaluate the influence of a period of intensified wave conditions (wave event) on nearshore groundwater flows and geochemistry in a sandy freshwater beach. Comprehensive vertical nested pressure transducer data obtained over a 2.5 day isolated wave event reveal the development of transient groundwater flow recirculations through the nearshore aquifer combined with enhanced water exchange across the sediment-water interface (i.e., beach face). The wave-induced groundwater flows were simulated in FEFLOW using a phase-averaged wave setup approach …

The Effect Of Urbanization On The Embodied Energy Of Drinking Water In Tampa, Florida, Mark Vincent Eli Santana

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Increasing urbanization has serious implications for resource and energy use. One of these resources is drinking water. The increased amount of impervious surfaces associated with urban development is responsible for increased runoff during rain events, which may have a negative impact on the quality of nearby bodies of water, including drinking water sources. The growing populations associated with urbanization require a higher water demand. In addition, urban drinking water systems use energy to collect, treat, and distribute a safe reliable effluent to users. Therefore, this study focuses on the degree to which urbanization influences the embodied energy of drinking water …

Energy Production And Effluent Quality In Tubular Digesters Treating Livestock Waste In Rural Costa Rica, Maureen Njoki Kinyua

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Use of tubular anaerobic digesters to treat livestock waste in developing countries has energy, agricultural, health, social and environmental benefits. However, careful use of digester effluent as a soil amendment is required due to the potential presence of protozoan parasites Cryptosporidium parvum and Giardia lamblia. This research investigated the performance of four tubular digesters in the Monteverde region of Costa Rica. High (>75%) volatile solids and BOD5 removal efficiencies were observed, which was attributed to the formation of a biologically active floccular sludge layer. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and bioprocess models were developed to evaluate the transport and transformation …

Environmental Sustainability Of Wastewater Treatment Plants Integrated With Resource Recovery: The Impact Of Context And Scale, Pablo K. Cornejo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is an urgent need for wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) to adapt to a rise in water and energy demands, prolonged periods of drought, climate variability, and resource scarcity. As population increases, minimizing the carbon and energy footprints of wastewater treatment, while properly managing nutrients is crucial to improving the sustainability WWTPs. Integrated resource recovery can mitigate the environmental impact of wastewater treatment systems; however, the mitigation potential depends on various factors such as treatment technology, resource recovery strategy, and system size.

Amidst these challenges, this research seeks to investigate the environmental sustainability of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) integrating resource …