Monitoring of key parameters during the wastewater / sewage / industrial effluent treatment process is important to trace water quality and to ensure that they are in compliance with the standards set by the governing authorities such as the Department of Environment (DOE).
pH is a measure of how acidic/basic water is. The measurement and analysis of pH value plays a vital role in many industrial processes. Alteration of pH value has significant effect on the water quality, process efficiency and consumers’ safety. A small change can alter the behaviors of chemicals, flavour, colour, shelf-life, stability and acidity of measured medium.
Dissolved oxygen (DO) refers to the total amount of oxygen currently present in the water. DO originates from the atmosphere or as a byproduct of photosynthesis. Once dissolved in water, it can play a significant role in chemical processes in wastewater treatment.
Ammonium nitrogen is an inorganic nitrogen compound commonly present in raw water and untreated sewage. Deposition of nitrogen compounds results in acidification and eutrophication of land and water, which is harmful to the environment and nature.
Continuous flow measurement and reliable monitoring of the influent and effluent are an essential task for the operation of a treatment facility. It is used for process management, load balancing, monitoring of pumping volume, system overload or underload, etc. to ensure that flow rates remain within desired value.
- Electromagnetic flowmeter is a volumetric flowmeter that measures water that moves through a pipeline in a given period of time.
- Open channel flow meter is commonly used for monitoring the effluent discharge. It includes a non-contacting sensor mounted above the flume or weir (eg: parshall flume, rectangular weir, V-Notch weir, etc.).
Turbidity is the measure of relative clarity of the water. It is considered as the simplest and basic indicator of the amount of suspended sediment in the water. High turbidity can be caused organic materials such as algae, and inorganic materials such as silt and sediment. It is often evaluated alongside other water quality parameters like suspended solids, concentration of bacteria, nutrients, pesticides, or metals.
Suspended solids can affect the performance of the treatment facilities, ie the filtration process, instrumentation and plumbing systems. High amounts of suspended solids can also have harmful effects on the ecological system.
- Total suspended solids (TSS) is the concentration of particles suspended in the water column that are larger than two microns in size. When water is poured through a pre-weighed filter, the particulate matter that remains after the filter dries is classified as TSS.
- Total dissolved solids (TDS) is smaller than two microns. It comprises of inorganic salt and small amount of organic matters that dissolve in water.
Chemical oxygen demand (COD) measures the amount of oxygen required to chemically oxidize the organic material and inorganic nutrients, such as Ammonia or Nitrate, present in water. Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) measures the amount of oxygen consumed by microorganisms in decomposing organic matter in water.
