Wastewater treatment with anaerobic membrane bioreactor and reverse osmosis

Domestic wastewater from a new city district in Stockholm has been treated by an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AMBR) followed by reverse osmosis (RO). The main objectives were to study the gas production, the reduction of organic matter and nutrient recovery. The AMBR was operated at 22 °C (equal to the average temperature in the influent) and a hydraulic retention time of 0.6 d. The results show that the reduction of organic matter, nitrogen and phosphorus over the AMBR was approximately 92, 9 and 9%, respectively. A stable gas production was registered throughout the evaluation period. The overall removal efficiency, i.e. including the RO, was >99% for TOC, >91% for Kj-N and about 99% for P. Adding a reverse osmosis (RO) unit to the AMBR makes it possible to produce a concentrated, nutrient rich product well suited for agricultural use. The quality of the concentrate is, in terms of nutrient concentration and heavy metal content, similar to source separated human urine, i.e. nitrogen content about 3 g N/L and <2 mg Cd/kg P. However, addition of acid is required to prevent precipitation/fouling of the RO. The total electricity use for operation for the system, including the RO-unit, is estimated to be 3–6 kWh/m³.