MBR-technology in municipal wastewater treatment: challenging the traditional treatment technologies

In the Netherlands a development programme for the application of the MBR technology in municipal wastewater treatment has started. This paper briefly describes this development programme and goes into detail for the first step: a large pilot plant study at the Beverwijk WWTP. Under the supervision of DHV Water four different membrane systems from Kubota, Mitsubishi, X-Flow and Zenon were extensively tested. The objectives set for the study were more than achieved. The available world knowledge regarding municipal MBR was extremely limited and often very specific for a particular country’s wastewater and wastewater flow characteristic. The conditions set by the Dutch situation were the first of its kind and lead to new methods of MBR optimisation. After almost two years of intensive research and further development of the technological feasibility of the MBR for the Netherlands, it has been decided to extend it to demonstration scale.