Experimental study of high rate pond system treating piggery wastewater

The results of an experimental study conducted in a full-scale high rate pond system treating piggery wastewater at Jianfengshan Piggery, Panyu City, Guandong Province, are presented. The system consists of two advanced anaerobic ponds (AAP) in parallel, followed by an anaerobic transformation pond (ATP) and a five-cell algae-bacterial pond (ABP). The mechanism of the AAP is described and the hydraulic flow pattern analyzed. Fermentation pits (FP) built on the bottom performed very efficiently, operating like UASB in principle. A new concept of ATP is advanced, based on its ability to transform poorly degradable materials to more easily degradable ones. It was found in the study that the HRP system was more efficient, more reliable and saved 40% land area compared with a conventional pond system. Economic analyses of both the energy consumption and the benefit to the pond system of fish farming are also included in the paper.