ZeeWeed 500 is trusted everywhere with over a million membranes in service

SUEZ Water Technologies & Solutions, the global leader in reinforced hollow-fiber ultrafiltration membranes, provides customers with trusted solutions for the municipal, commercial and industrial markets. The ZeeWeed 500 family offers solutions for all flow ranges – from micro-sized to mega-sized applications.

Featured Case Study Videos 

ZeeWeed 500 Membrane Technology at EPCOR

• Treat Municipal Wastewater with Membrane Bioreactor (MBR)

• Malt producer improves wastewater treatment using MBR

To learn more about the ZeeWeed 500 product family and how the ultrafiltration membranes work, visit here. 

Oxford Pollution Control Plant

• Application: Conventional wastewater treatment plant retrofit
• Capacity: ADF: 3.6 MGD (13,620 m3/d)
• MDF: 6.8 MGD (25,880 m3/d)
• PHF: 9.0 MGD (34,050 m3/d)
• Location: London, Ontario, Canada
• Commissioning: April 2008

challenge

The city of London, Ontario is experiencing
significant residential growth in the area serviced by the Oxford Pollution Control Plant (PCP). In 2005, it was recognized that the existing plant capacity needed to be almost doubled in the near-term, with a long-term future capacity of about five times the existing capacity.

In addition to the increased capacity, the expanded plant would be required to meet more stringent effluent objectives, including total phosphorus less than 0.5 mg/L, and summer ammonia less than
2.0 mg/L. It was apparent from the performance of the existing plant that tertiary filtration would likely
be required in order to meet the phosphorus requirement. And, due to the relatively low alkalinity
in the influent wastewater, it was apparent that the nitrification process could be inhibited, making the ammonia requirement more difficult to achieve reliably.

Several other factors were important to consider in the expansion plans for the Oxford PCP. The plant is located along a road that serves as the main link between the city and the surrounding areas.

The location is also on the banks of the Thames River, along which are planned future multi-use trails and recreational areas. A golf course and several new residential areas are also a short distance from the plant site. Finally, the plant location is upstream of three First Nations communities. In order to be sensitive to these factors, the plant expansion needed to minimize the additional required footprint in order to reduce the visual impact from the road and surrounding areas, and at the same time ensure a high-quality effluent that considered the environment into which the treated effluent would be discharged.

solution

An evaluation process was undertaken to compare various options for the plant expansion, including several conventional treatment options along with membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology. The evaluation process resulted in the selection of MBR technology as the basis for the expansion, and following a competitive bid process involving three membrane equipment suppliers, SUEZ was selected to provide ZeeWeed* membrane equipment for the project.

A key consideration in the selection of MBR technology was that the membranes could be installed within the former secondary clarifier tanks and that the pumping equipment could be arranged within the existing pump gallery. This retrofit design served to greatly reduce the amount of footprint and construction cost that would otherwise be required.

In addition, selection of an MBR process ensured that the effluent quality requirements would be met consistently and reliably. A coagulant is added to precipitate dissolved phosphorus compounds, and the ZeeWeed ultrafiltration membranes, with a pore size of 0.04 microns, ensure removal of virtually all suspended solids, resulting in effluent total phosphorus concentrations well below 0.5 mg/L. In addition, MBR systems allow for precise control of SRT, and this, combined with the inclusion of anoxic zones to increase the alkalinity of the process, ensures that the effluent ammonia requirements will be met year-round.

A final consideration was that the expansion and upgrade needed to be affordable. A detailed cost comparison between the conventional treatment option and MBR technology was performed, and it was found that the 20-year life-cycle costs of the two options were comparable. Key factors in the MBR design that resulted in a favorable capital cost were that much of the existing infrastructure could be reused and that the membranes themselves could be placed within existing tanks.

process overview

The retrofit of the Oxford PCP from conventional to MBR technology occurred with the plant staying in operation throughout the construction process.

• New 2-mm drum screens were added to the pretreatment processes.
• Primary clarification capacity was increased.
• An additional aeration tank was constructed.
• ZeeWeed membranes were installed into the former secondary clarifier tanks. The membranes were assembled into six trains, with four ZeeWeed 500d cassettes installed per train.
• UV disinfection capacity was increased, due to the increased flow rate.
• A ZeeWeed membrane sludge thickener was added for WAS thickening.

retrofitting the bioreactor at Terravant with the ZeeWeed* 500S solves wastewater issue

challenge

Terravant, a California company which processes and bottles wine from more than 2000 tons of grapes annually, had a wastewater challenge they needed to solve. They were producing more wastewater than they could treat within their existing wastewater system.

In 2009 a conventional bioreactor/clarifier was installed at Terravant to handle the wastewater produced. While it was sized to handle the flow, it was undersized by 6-times, to handle the wastewater strength during the harvest and production season.

To continue operation and run within their environmental discharge limits, Terravant was forced to store the wastewater onsite in twenty-two 21,000 gallon tanks. This wastewater was then fed into the bioreactor at a flow it could handle over the course of the year, however, 30,000 gallons remained when the new processing season commenced.

The situation was unsustainable and created many negative effects including:

• Odor problems throughout the year
• Aesthetics of having 22 waste tanks on site
• Cost of renting wastewater tanks annually
• The large footprint of the tanks prevented that space being available profitable use 

They began to research solutions from four vendors, including Winesecrets, a SUEZ channel partner. Three vendors proposed installing a new system or adding an additional process downstream of the current facility. Winesecrets proposed a much more economical retrofit solution.

solution

Winesecrets specializes in solving process issues in wineries, and knows when to pull in additional expertise to solve them. They leveraged the wastewater process knowledge of the Wallace Group to review the situation. It became clear that SUEZ’s ultrafiltration membranes and increasing biological aeration would be a cost-effective and efficient answer to
Terravant’s dilemma.

The SUEZ ZeeWeed* 500S Single-module cassette with reinforced membranes and modular design are ideal for smaller flow wastewater systems. A half-day was required to install the ZeeWeed system (Fig. 1) within the bioreactor tank to immediately produce higher quality effluent. Adding supplemental biological aeration, the complete retrofitted system was up and running at a fraction of the cost and installation time of other proposed options.

results

Since implementing the ZeeWeed 500S;

• Wastewater storage tanks have not been required, and their resulting issues are gone.
• Effluent targets have been met without increasing the footprint of the wastewater treatment plant.
• Plant staff can focus on wine making, not wastewater treatment.

Seekonk treatment of iron and manganese

challenge

The Seekonk Water District draws its water supply from groundwater with iron and manganese levels exceeding US National Secondary Drinking Water Regulations. In addition, one of its wells was contaminated with bacteria in 1998.

solution

ZeeWeed* 500 immersed ultrafiltration (UF) membranes were chosen to meet their challenges. Immersed directly in tanks, the ZeeWeed membranes draw clean water through the membranes’ microscopic pores, rejecting bacteria, suspended solids, precipitated iron and manganese. Bruce Baldwin, Water Superintendent for the Seekonk Water District in 2001, said, “Thanks to this new facility, not only does the District meet current and projected community water needs, but this membrane treatment process gives peace of mind that we are supplying the best quality of water that we can at an affordable price. SUEZ’s technology outperformed all competing systems, including conventional green sand technology.”

time for membrane replacement

After more than 18 years of operation with the original membranes, the time had finally come for their replacement. The District made the decision to replace with ZeeWeed 500D membranes. We asked Rob Bernardo, Water Superintendent in 2019 the reasons for the selection: "Reliability and proven performance are just two reasons why the Seekonk Water District is committed to using the ZW500D membranes to deliver the highest quality drinking water to our customers. The SUEZ service and support team offers water suppliers individually tailored solutions to ever-changing water supply regulations and demands. The Insight remote monitoring service enables the Seekonk Water District to confidently and continuously supply our customers with the highest quality drinking water and fire protection."

• Application: Treatment of domestic sewage from a 42-person tent camp for discharge to the ground surface
• Capacity: 1,500 gpd (5,700 lpd)
• Location: Remote mineral exploration camp in the Alaska Range, Denali Highway, Alaska
• Commissioned: June 20, 2018

challenge

Summers in Alaska are intense, but short. A mineral exploration company had planned a full season of helicopter-supported drilling on a property in the Alaska Range. A logistics company had put together a 42-man tent camp that included a kitchen, wash car (urinals, showers, clothes washers, utility sinks), and the associated facilities. Exploration was scheduled to start soon, commitments having been made for a helicopter, drill rig, and crew to arrive. The only thing left to be determined was how to treat and dispose of wastewater.

Precious time had been lost searching for a location for a conventional septic system. The small campsite was in a low area confined by a hill on one side and a river on the other. No suitable location could be found, nor any viable alternative identified. High pumping fees to transport sewage off site for disposal seemed inevitable.

solution

The client was referred to Lifewater Engineering Company, a SUEZ channel partner in Fairbanks, Alaska. Lifewater assessed the situation and suggested a membrane bioreactor (MBR) with surface discharge since there was a vegetated area near the camp that could accept and disperse treated effluent. The Alaska Dept. of Environmental Conservation’s (ADEC) verbal concurrence with this plan triggered final design. Because this system would only operate seasonally in the warmer months, an insulated system was not needed, simplifying design and fabrication. The MBR design came together quickly since Lifewater and SUEZ engineers had recently collaborated to develop a generic design for a small MBR based on ZeeWeed* technology. Final design, plan review & approval, procurement, and fabrication proceeded concurrently, followed closely by delivery, commissioning, and operator training. In less than three weeks, the project went from purchase order to an operational system.

process overview

Sewage is collected from the kitchen and wash car in a lift station. The lift station pumps wastewater to a 1500-gallon trash tank; from which it flows by gravity to a 1500-gallon, aerated bioreactor. A submersible pump transfers mixed liquor from the bioreactor to a separate membrane tank which contains one
ZeeWeed hollow fiber UF membrane cassette.

 A pump pulls filtrate through the ZW500S and discharges it into a filtrate tank. A submersible pump in the filtrate tank intermittently discharges treated effluent to a vegetated area. The following table details the required discharge limits, and the actual values recorded.

conclusion

Lifewater designs rugged systems that must work with minimal intervention. SUEZ’s ZeeWeed 500S single cassettes are proven and robust that are ideally suited for building Membrane Bioreactors.

SUEZ and its Partners are here to help you meet your challenges.