Dynamic simulation and optimisation of a SBR wastewater treatment system

Sequential Batch Reactors operate in a sequence of steps, where the reactor receives wastewater, treats it, and discharges it. In this paper the operation of the SBR is decomposed into 4 phases, i.e., mixed fill, aerobic reaction, anoxic reaction, and settling. The last phase is described by a detailed partial differential equation model which is solved using the method of lines. The complete model and numerical simulator is then exploited for dynamic optimisation of the SBR operation, and in particular the optimisation of the daily flow subject to constraints on the effluent quality.