Real-time control reduced N2O emissions by 46%
Wastewater treatment plants must meet effluent requirements while managing process stability and operational efficiency. At the same time, nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions can occur as part of biological nitrogen removal. Unisense Environment worked with Skanderborg Forsyning and Envidan Denmark to develop and implement a real-time control approach aimed at reducing N2O emissions while complying with all applicable effluent requirements.
Approach: real-time control based on simultaneous nitrification/denitrification
The partners developed and implemented real-time N2O control with simultaneous nitrification/denitrification. The project focused on achieving lower N2O emissions without compromising discharge compliance.
Measured outcome and operational implications
Real-time control reduced N2O emissions by 46%. Power consumption increased marginally. In the overall assessment described in the report, real-time control and simultaneous nitrification/denitrification enable an energy-efficient process while reducing N2O emissions.
As an added benefit, full implementation of the real-time N2O control has been shown to increase the capacity of existing tanks significantly. This points to a potential operational advantage for facilities that need more treatment capacity without new tank volume, while still targeting lower N2O emissions and maintaining effluent compliance.
More details are available in this machine-translated report: Real-time management of nitrous oxide emissions from wastewater treatment plants and in the original Danish version:
