Restarting a wastewater treatment plant after a prolonged shutdown (such as during the COVID 19 lockdown), can be challenging. Here are a few tips for the safe and quick restart of your wastewater treatment plants. Click on the link to find out more.

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Restarting your wastewater treatment plant
after a shutdown (such as a COVID 19 lockdown)

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▪ The impact of COVID-19 has made this a challenging time for all companies in every
aspect. With the renewed focus on health and hygiene, wastewater treatment will be
an even more important subject for every company
▪ Wastewater treatment is not just another unit operation. The risk associated with a
non-performing wastewater treatment plant is very high – it can stop production and
damage your reputation
▪ Restarting wastewater treatment plants after a shutdown is one of the critical
challenges that companies have to deal with
▪ A.T.E. HUBER Envirotech is committed to offer the best possible support. Here are a
few tips for safe and quick restarting of your wastewater treatment plants
Restarting wastewater treatment plants after a shutdown

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Restarting wastewater treatment plants after a shutdown
1 Important thing to remember:
Inconceivable problems bring
inconceivable opportunities to learn, adapt
and be ready for the future…
…wastewater treatment is no exception!

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2 Basic considerations:
 A wastewater treatment plant is a “continuous
process plant”, especially when we are
dealing with biological treatment processes
 Wastewater treatment should be considered as
an ‘essential service’ and steps need to be
taken for the upkeep of the plant during any
shutdown or lockdown
Restarting wastewater treatment plants after a shutdown

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Restarting wastewater treatment plants after a shutdown
3 Action areas
 Precautions to be taken at the time of shut down for a safe and speedy restart
 Expediting the process of restarting
 Design provisions for future so that we can handle such eventualities
effectively
Disclaimer: The suggestions provided in this presentation are general guidelines provided based on our experience. Every site and every
wastewater is different and may behave differently than what is considered here. All actions at site should be taken under expert’s supervision such
that the safety and compliance are not compromised. A.T.E. HUBER Envirotech Private Limited shall not be held responsible for any loss or
damage whatsoever arising from the use of the information provided in this presentation.

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Precautions to be taken at the time of any shutdown
 Empty and clean raw wastewater/equalisation tanks and primary treatment completely. No untreated wastewater
should remain unattended when you are heading for a long shut down
 Supernatant of the anaerobic and aerobic reactors should be decanted to 50% capacity or up to sludge level after
ensuring that the quality meets the design and compliance requirement
 The anaerobic reactor should be kept in recirculation mode, the aeration in the aerobic reactor should be on and
blowers on auto timer mode
 Transfer sludge of secondary clarifier into the aeration tank. Then empty out the secondary clarifier and clean it.
Empty out all sludge dewatering and drying machines and clean them
 Make provision of auto dispensing of alternate feed (jaggery solution)
 Keep all chemicals in clean and dry place. You will need them when you restart ETP operations
 Make provision of minimum staff (1 person in day shift) to undertake essential upkeep of ETP
 Put barricades and sign boards restricting entry for unauthorised people

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Steps to be taken for restarting a wastewater treatment plant
 Decant clear treated water from the anaerobic and aerobic reactors. Check the quality before decanting.
 Check the bacterial concentration in the anaerobic and aerobic reactors (MLVSS) as % of design concentration.
 Use specific bio-cultures (1010 count) approximately 5 kg/m3 of anaerobic reactor or 1 kg/m3 of aeration tank
(i.e. when MLVSS is 0% of design). Check with supplier for the exact dosage.
 Start receiving raw effluent in the equalisation tank, then dose enzymes in the equalization tank for primary
breakdown of complex molecules
 Start filling the reactors with this conditioned effluent slowly (20% on day one) with no new feed for the next 48
hours
 Check COD reduction in the reactor supernatant liquid. If COD reduction is as per design add new feed
approximately in following sequence:
 Aeration tank, increase feed by 20-25% every day
 Anaerobic tank, increase feed by 2-3% every day
8. Use bio-boosters to boost the bacterial multiplication in anaerobic and aerobic tank if required

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Bio-boosters to expedite the process of restarting wastewater treatment plants
Enzymes
▪ BBE-1 to break down fats and oil
▪ BBE-2 to break down refractory COD
Micronutrients
▪ BBM-1 to boost anaerobic biodegradation activity
▪ BBM-2 to boost aerobic anaerobic microorganism growth
Active anaerobic and aerobic bio cultures
▪ BBC-A-1 for aeration tanks
▪ BBC-AN-1 for anaerobic digesters

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Enzyme – BBE-1
Benefits:
▪ Works even in environments with heavy oil and grease
content
▪ Acts as a wetting agent and emulsifier
▪ Decreases maintenance issues
▪ Enhances efficiency of aerobic and anaerobic
biological systems
BBE-1 concentrate for fats, oil and grease removal includes a mixture of non-
bacterial active enzymes with a proprietary non-ionic surfactant package and
catalyst

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Enzyme – BBE-2
Benefits:
▪ Cleaves complex organics
▪ Improves water quality and settling
▪ Decreases process upsets
▪ Removes unpleasant odours
▪ Achieves a balanced bacterial population.
▪ Reduces residual/refractory COD
BBE-2 concentrate is a blend of active non-bacterial enzymes for breaking down
complex organics, thus helping the bacteria in their degradation and bringing about
COD reduction.

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Micronutrients – BBM-1
Benefits:
▪ Improve anaerobic biomass activity
▪ Achieve consistent COD reduction
▪ Improve biogas production
▪ Improve the overall system
efficiency
BBM-1 concentrate for anaerobic bioreactors is a ready-mix mineral complex
provided to improve activity of anaerobic microorganisms. The minerals act as co-
factors for enzymatic processes and boost microorganism metabolism

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Micronutrients – BBM-2
Benefits:
▪ Compatible for both aerobic and anaerobic systems
▪ Can be used together with other products of BB
series
▪ Enhances biomass growth
▪ Improves the biomass quality
▪ Achieves consistent COD reduction
▪ Improves system efficiency
BBM-2 tablets for aerobic and anaerobic bioreactors comprise a vitamin complex
designed for improving the health and activity of microorganisms. The vitamins are
required by bacteria for boosting cell multiplication and metabolism

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Active anaerobic and aerobic bio cultures – BBC
Benefits:
▪ Speeds up bioreactor commissioning process
▪ Also recommended as daily dose for maintenance
▪ Suitable for troubleshooting and quick recovery of
biological system
▪ Suitable for high as well as low COD concentrations
▪ 100% non toxic and non pathogenic
BBC is a specially isolated consortium of microorganisms developed for wastewater
treatment, specifically for anaerobic biodegradation (BBC-AN-1) and aerobic
biodegradation (BBC-A-1). It has a microbial count of 1010 to 1011 cfu/ml

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Design provisions for the future
 Extra storage space for raw effluent preferably 2 days storage for equalisation tank
 Provision of spare dosing systems
 Provision for internal recirculation of the reactor contents in aeration and anaerobic reactor
 Provision of decanting arrangement (pump) for anaerobic and aerobic reactors
 Provide VFDs for the air blowers used for aeration tanks
 Provision of polymer dosing at the inlet of secondary clarifier. This is very handy in initial stages
and helps in expediting the start up process

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A.T.E. HUBER Envirotech Private Limited
Address: CTS 689, A-19, Ground Floor, Bhagwati House,
Veera Desai Road, Andheri (West), Mumbai - 400053, India
Web site: www.atehuber.com
Mail to: wwtp@atehuber.com

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