Activated Sludge Process Control
Biological fundamentals, process control, clarifier optimization and applied process math, taught through operating days at a fictional training plant.
Who it is for
Municipal and industrial plant operators, lab analysts and supervisors who run or support an activated sludge process.
Format
Online, self-paced: 8 short modules with slides, the instructor's narration, calculators and a check after each module, plus the student manual. Also taught live over Microsoft Teams or on-site.
Length and price
4 hours (240 minutes of instruction), $120.
What you will learn
Taught by Brad Musick. 8 modules. Examples come from the White River Resource Recovery Facility (WRRRF), a fictional training plant.
- Start here (10 min)How the course works, the 8 objectives, the White River training plant and a self-check quiz.
- Biological fundamentals (40 min)Heterotrophic, nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria, protozoa and filaments, how the succession from amoebae to rotifers tracks sludge age, and the nitrification and alkalinity balance with a calculator.
- Process controls (35 min)SRT, MCRT, sludge age and F/M, SSV30 and SVI, RAS by the settleometer and mass balance methods, and WAS to hold a target SRT. Includes the settleometer animation and RAS and WAS calculators.
- Clarifiers and storm flow (20 min)Surface overflow, solids and weir loading, detention time, and a storm-flow playbook, with a clarifier loading calculator.
- Daily operation and troubleshooting (35 min)The daily process control routine, how much to change and how long to wait, the seven-step method, and 6 troubleshooting guides: bulking, rising clumps, foam, rising ammonia, turbid effluent and storm washout, each with what NOT to do.
- Applied process math (40 min)The pounds formula, F/M, MCRT, SVI, two RAS methods, WAS to reach a target SRT, clarifier loadings and aeration detention time, as "try it, then reveal" worked examples.
- Process variations, monitoring and safety (30 min)Operating ranges for conventional, plug flow, complete mix, step feed, contact stabilization, extended aeration, oxidation ditch, SBR and MBR plants, SOUR and state point checks, sampling quality, and aeration basin safety.
- Practice exercises and problems (20 min)A storm weekend, a blower outage, getting SRT back on target, preparing for winter nitrification, floating clumps on a Saturday, and 15 practice problems with answers.
Free practice tool. Practice with the free clarifier state point and RAS calculator.
Open the clarifier calculatorLearning objectives
At the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Describe the roles of heterotrophic, nitrifying, and denitrifying bacteria, protozoa, and filaments in activated sludge, and relate indicator organisms to sludge age.
- Explain the environmental requirements (DO, pH, alkalinity, temperature, nutrients) of a nitrifying activated sludge system and calculate an alkalinity balance.
- Calculate and interpret SRT, MCRT, Gould sludge age, F/M, SVI, and hydraulic retention time from plant data.
- Select and calculate RAS rates by settleometer and mass-balance methods, and set WAS rates to hold a target SRT.
- Calculate secondary clarifier surface overflow, solids loading, weir loading, and detention time, and use them to optimize clarifier performance during high flows.
- Run a daily process control routine: know what to check, what normal looks like at WRRRF, what to adjust, by how much, and how long to wait before judging the result.
- Diagnose bulking, foaming, rising sludge, ammonia breakthrough, turbid effluent and storm washout with a systematic guide (symptom, first checks, likely causes, corrective action, what NOT to do).
- Solve operator-certification style activated sludge math problems using the 8.34 lb/gal pounds formula and standard US units.
Instructor, completion rules and credit
Instructor
Brad Musick, 45 years in wastewater treatment, Class IV operator in Indiana and Hawaii, and former superintendent of two Indiana plants. Each module has an "Ask the instructor" link: Brad reads every question and replies by email.
How you complete it
Work through the 8 modules in order. Each module ends with a 4-question check; you need 3 of 4 to open the next module. The final quiz opens after every check is passed and about 230 minutes of study are logged. It has 20 questions drawn from all 8 objectives; you need 80 percent, with up to 3 attempts, then instructor review. After you pass and fill in a short course evaluation, you get a certificate of completion in the name you enroll with.
Continuing education credit
CEUs available where approved. IDEM approval for this online course is pending, so Indiana credit is not offered for the online version yet; we will post it here when it is approved. Check with your certifying body about what it accepts.
Access
90 days of online access from purchase: the course, the student manual (up to 3 downloads), the final quiz and your certificate. A certificate you earn can be reprinted later.
What you need
A computer or tablet with a current web browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari) with JavaScript on, an internet connection, a PDF reader for the manual, and a scientific calculator. The study timer counts time only while a module page is open and in front, and you have been active in the last 5 minutes.
Prefer it live?
Brad teaches this course live over Microsoft Teams or on-site at your plant, with the same modules. See on-site training or contact us.
See how it works
What operators take away
- A daily process control routine you can start using at your own plant.
- RAS and WAS settings that hold a target SRT, and the math to check them.
- 6 step-by-step troubleshooting guides: bulking, rising clumps, foaming, ammonia breakthrough, turbid effluent and storm washout.
- Worked process math: SRT, MCRT, F/M, SVI and clarifier loadings.
- A final quiz that tests all 8 objectives, and a certificate of completion from Wastewater Academy™ when you pass it.
- A student manual to download (comes with the class).
Look inside
A few sample pages from the student manual. Tap a page to open it full size.
These are sample pages only. The full student manual comes with the class.
Register
4 hours, $120.
CEU approval for this class is pending with Indiana IDEM, and CEUs are not approved yet. If you need CEU credit, please wait to buy until we announce approval here.
Registration is open. Register online and start right away.
After you pay, you are taken to a page where you start the online course and download the student manual. The final quiz opens after the 8 modules and their checks, and you get a certificate of completion from Wastewater Academy™ when you pass it and complete the course evaluation. Online access, including the course, manual, quiz, and certificate, lasts 90 days from purchase. To see the style of questions first, try a free practice quiz.
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