SymBio® Elite

AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH FOR ONE-STEP NITROGEN AND PHOSPHORUS REMOVAL

Enviroquip, Inc. of Austin, Texas is pleased to offer the SymBio® Elite process (protected by US Patent # 6,712,970) as a cost-effective option for biological nutrient removal (BNR) needs. Based on Enviroquip’s original, award winning, SymBio® process for simultaneous nitrification and denitrification, the SymBio® Elite process is a technological advancement in the area of BNR and wastewater treatment process control. The SymBio® Elite process is capable of providing a single-step nitrogen and phosphorous removal for wastewater treatment plant operators.

WHAT IS IT?

The original SymBio® process (protected by US Patent # 5,906,746) monitors the NADH (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, a coenzyme) level in the biomass along with the dissolved oxygen (DO) level in the water to precisely predict the changes in the biological oxygen demand. Based on these predictions, the aeration is automatically controlled to maintain low DO (< 1.0 ppm) for simultaneous nitrification and denitrification (SNdN) in the same basin. This operation creates a DO gradient within the sludge floc where the outer fraction of the floc has oxygen available for respiration and the biomass in this zone is maintained under relative aerobic condition, whereas the center of the same floc is deprived of any DO and the biomass in this zone is forced to use nitrate for anoxic respiration allowing simultaneous denitrification.

SymBio® Process: 50+ installations worldwide/150 MGD+ optimized

With the SymBio® Elite process, the process control strategy is modified to allow the development of a partial anaerobic environment in the sludge floc by lowering the operating DO levels while monitoring the biomass NADH levels. This results in phosphorous release by the biomass in the anaerobic zone. Enhanced biological phosphorous uptake occurs in the aerobic zone of the floc or when the aeration is subsequently increased by the SymBio® Elite process control system. Municipal as well as industrial plants (existing as well as new) can address their BNR needs in one step with the SymBio® Elite technology. A second step, known as the post-aeration or the post-nitrification step can be added (optional) to improve the overall plant performance and to provide positive DO in the mixed liquor before discharging to the secondary clarifiers.