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Superoxygenation : analysis of oxygen transfer design parameters using high purity oxygen and a pressurized aeration column

University of British Columbia

Supplying oxygen to water via the physical process of aeration is the most widely used water treatment technology. It supports microbial growth in water and wastewaters by introducing dissolved oxygen to the water, stabilizing organic matter and providing the necessary oxygen for many other aquatic species to survive. There exists the potential for much improvement in aeration techniques, which can account for 60 percent of the energy required for water treatment. This research aimed to analyze one such technique that has limited research of this magnitude, aerating water under high pressures with high-purity oxygen. Increasing the partial pressure of oxygen in the aeration gas, by way of Henry's law, increases the saturation concentration of the water and, thus, several aeration design parameters. The parameters required for aeration design and sought after in this research are: the mass transfer coefficient (KLa), saturation concentration (C*sat), standard oxygen transfer rate (SOTR), standard aeration efficiency (SAE), and the standard oxygen transfer efficiency (SOTE). This research compared the obtained design values under gauge pressures of 0, 50, 100, 150, and 200 kPa using air and Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) oxygen in an 18.5 foot (5.6 meter) aeration column, allowing for comparative analysis of the design parameters for aeration. Results show that, with increasing pressure for both air and PSA oxygen: KLa decreases, C*sat increases; however, at a rate other than predicted by Henry's law, the SOTR remains constant, the SAE decreases, and the SOTE increases. Between air and PSA oxygen, PSA was found to have a slightly larger KLa, larger C*sat, larger SOTR, lower SAE, and a higher SOTE.

Text

2014-08-07

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 Canada

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/49938

Civil Engineering

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ca/