In Pfalzpaint, north of Ingolstadt, Germany, is a ClearFox® containerized wastewater treatment plant with a fixed bed reactor, which treats the municipal wastewater of several districts, around 1,000 PE. After treatment, it flows into the Altmühl, a tributary of the Danube River. Since the system operates very reliably, the regional wastewater treatment plant neighborhood gathered in early July 2021 to learn about the system’s treatment performance. ClearFox® staff gave short presentations and answered the questions of the operators.
Regensburg wastewater treatment plant operators are enthusiastic about ClearFox® fixed bed reactor and leasing process
ClearFox® wastewater treatment plants are tailored to the needs of customers – also through the leasing process
Whoever buys a wastewater treatment plant must consider a few things. These are the permits for construction and operation, the appropriate treatment for the incoming wastewater, and the specified discharge values of the district. To ensure that the wastewater treatment system meets all requirements, ClearFox® treatment plants are also available on a leasing process. If the operator is satisfied with the plant, he can take it over completely. With the fixed bed reactor, the company offers the customer a solution tailored to specific requirements.
This is also the case in the Pfalzpaint district of Walting. There, a ClearFox® containerized wastewater treatment plant, which operates with a fixed bed reactor, purifies the municipal wastewater. At the beginning, the responsible wastewater treatment officer took advantage of the leasing process to convince himself of the treatment performance. After six months, he took over the plant.
As it works very reliably, he organized, together with the ClearFox® team, a meeting of the wastewater treatment officers from the region to exchange ideas and discuss the advantages of the ClearFox® wastewater treatment plant and the leasing process. 18 sewage plant operators accepted the invitation. Dr. Sabine Düreth-Joneck, Head of Research and Development at PPU Umwelttechnik and Gerd Krasser, Managing Director of euTecK GmbH and partner of PPU, presented the fixed bed reactor together with the leasing process. At the beginning, they went into the technical components and showed the individual process steps on a 3D model.
Dr. Sabine Düreth-Joneck then took wastewater samples, which she examined in PPU’s in-house laboratory. She thus confirmed the wastewater values stated by the plant operator. While the COD in the influent is still 557 mg/l, it is only 41 mg/l after treatment. This means that the wastewater can flow into the Altmühl without hesitation.
What distinguishes the ClearFox® fixed bed reactor?
The ClearFox® fixed bed reactor is a highly efficient, biological treatment stage which is particularly suitable for container construction. The fixed bed reactor treat wastewater from municipalities or industrial plants. Since they can operate in parallel or in series, the plants can handle flow rates of up to 5,000 m³/day. The modified fixed bed reactor allows to achieve high treatment performance in a very compact space. Since the plant is completely installed in an ISO sea container, it requires only a very small footprint. In addition, it operates automatically after commissioning and is particularly low-maintenance. This reduces operating costs to a minimum.
The fixed bed reactor substrate consists of mesh tubes that are connected to each other at the front. It is UV stable and does not biodegrade during the lifetime of the plant. Initially, a screen screw removes all coarse wastewater contaminants. Via a primary clarifier, the wastewater flows to a rotating immersion tank, where initial biological treatment takes place, and then to a fixed bed reactor. After a short start-up time, a biofilm, the microorganic colonization, forms on the fixed bed material. This converts the organic substances in the wastewater into mineral substances.
An aeration system, which is installed underneath the fixed bed material, supplies the organisms with air and also causes a flow that completely mixes the contents of the basin. Via a sedimentation basin, the wastewater flows into a secondary sedimentation basin and finally into the Altmühl river. To convince yourself of the cleaning performance of the process, it is also available as a leasing process.
A wastewater treatment plant must comply with either the DIN 4261 or EN 12566 standard. All ClearFox® wastewater treatment plants are CE certified. In addition, all plants require a general, building authority approval from the German Institute for Building Technology. The building owner must submit an application for approval to the responsible water authority of the municipality or city. This includes, among other things, a construction description, drawing of the system and type approval. The ClearFox® team supports all customers in the approval process, on the one hand with their expertise and on the other hand with all available documents.
All guests at the event were convinced by the containerized ClearFox® fixed bed reactor. Dr. Sabine Düreth-Joneck and Gerd Krasser answered all questions about the system and the leasing process. The aim of the ClearFox® team was to further establish the submerged fixed bed reactor as used in Pfalzpaint.
