Assessment of small mechanical wastewater treatment plants: Relative life cycle environmental impacts of construction and operations

Moussavi, Sussan; Thompson, Matthew; Li, Shaobin; Dvorak, Bruce

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112802

Assessment of small mechanical wastewater treatment plants: Relative life cycle environmental impacts of construction and operations

Journal Article · Thu May 20 00:00:00 EDT 2021 · Journal of Environmental Management

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112802· OSTI ID:1845899

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Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE (United States); University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE (United States)
Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)

Many slow growing and shrinking rural communities struggle with aging or inadequate wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), and face challenges in constructing and operating such facilities. Although existing literature has provided insight into the environmental sustainability of large facilities, including both the construction and operational phases, these studies have not examined small, rural facilities treating less than 7,000 m³/d (1.8 MGD) of wastewater in adequate depth and breadth. In this study, a detailed inventory of the construction and operational data for 16 case studies of small WWTPs was developed to elucidate their environmental life cycle impacts. Conventional LCA framework was followed. The results show that the environmental impacts of both the construction and operational phases are considerable. Operational impacts are highly related to energy usage. Improving energy efficiency of a plant may reduce the environmental impacts related to operations. Construction impacts can vary considerably between facilities. Process-related factors (e.g., concrete and reinforcing steel used in basins) are typically sized using the design flow; thus much of the variability in construction impacts among plants stems from the non-process related infrastructure. Multiple regression analysis was used as an exploratory tool to identify which non-process related plant aspects contribute to the variable environmental impact of small WWTPs. These factors include aluminum, cast iron, and the capacity utilization ratio (defined as the ratio of average flow to design flow). Furthermore, industry practitioners should consider these factors when aiming to reduce the environmental impacts of a small WWTP related to construction. Scenario sensitivity analyses found that the environmental impact of construction became smaller with longer design life, and the end-of-life consideration does not heavily influence the environmental sustainability of a WWTP.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Advanced Manufacturing Office

Grant/Contract Number:: EE0007718

OSTI ID:: 1845899

Journal Information:: Journal of Environmental Management, Journal Name: Journal of Environmental Management Vol. 292; ISSN 0301-4797

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
42 ENGINEERING
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design
energy efficiency
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operation
small wastewater treatment plant

Assessment of small mechanical wastewater treatment plants: Relative life cycle environmental impacts of construction and operations

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