Resumen
Detection and characterization of hidden industrial inflows causing high fluctuations of the inlet load, is a challenging issue pushing plant operators for a cost-effective solution at regional wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). On the other hand, carbon source of food industrial origin may have a good use at WWTPs facing otherwise inlet carbon source deficiency.In a case study of a regional domestic WWTP receiving seasonally organic carbon-rich discharge from a fruit juice factory, a new method combining on-site measurements and mathematical modelling was developed and successfully applied for estimating the quality and quantity of both industrial influent load and incoming domestic wastewater streams properly. The originally un-staged bioreactor system operated at low dissolved oxygen (low DO) concentration was unable to meet effluent nitrogen requirements with an additional constant risk of encouraging filament growth. A novel screening method based on special sampling campaigns for estimating carbon availability and C:N ratios of influent wastewater streams coming separately from the large catchment area, was developed and applied. Staging of the previously low DO basins into a flexible system containing non-aerated selectors proved to be efficient for enhancing both biological nitrogen removal and sculpturing appropriately settling biomass.