Optimizing the Performance of a Simulated Wastewater Treatment Plant by the Relaxation Method

Abstract

Nowadays, wastewater treatment plants with activated sludge are used to improve the quality of the effluent to be discharged into a body of water. To increase the performance of these stations, different control strategies are implemented and tested. Optimizing a control strategy is a complex activity that involves performing several tests. This paper presents the results obtained in the process of optimizing a control strategy using the method of relaxation. Therefore, the regulation loops of ammonium and nitrate were considered and their optimal references were determined. The simulations were performed with the Benchmark Simulation No.2 (BSM2) model. The data obtained were compared to the results obtained by simulation with the reference strategy of the model.

Keywords

• wastewater
• mathematical model
• simulation
• wastewater treatment